Another European country hit by the transition to electric cars: how many people lose their jobs

The transition to electric vehicles will jeopardize some 73,000 jobs in Italy, metallurgical unions and a lobby group said, urging the government to begin talks on measures to support the car industry.

Analysts say Italy’s auto industry could be worse off than elsewhere due to the small average size of companies in the country and the amount of investment needed to comply with the EU’s “Fit-For-55” climate plan. which gradually eliminates combustion engines. 2035.

“This plan, if not accompanied by government intervention, could lead to a loss of about 73,000 jobs in Italy, up from 63,000 in 2025-2030,” the Federmeccanica employers’ group and the FIM unions said in a statement. FIOM and UILM, a rare moment of unity.

They said vehicle production in Italy fell from more than 1.8 million units in 1997 to 700,000 last year, including less than 500,000 cars.

A volatile situation

“We need to get back to producing about 1.5 million units a year,” said FIOM chief Francesca Re David.

The Italian car industry has 278,000 direct and indirect employees and represents about 6% of the country’s gross domestic product, according to data from the car association ANFIA.

However, Industry Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said he would put forward proposals in the coming weeks for incentives to support the Italian car industry.

The unions also urge the government to reach a final agreement with Stellantis, the country’s largest carmaker, to build a battery plant to help production of electrified vehicles in Italy.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said last year that the group would build one of its European battery plants in Termoli, in central Italy, but no agreement had yet been signed with Rome.