UniCredit recently reached an agreement
with the Italian trade unions over its Transform 2019 plan, which includes 3,900
full-time equivalent redundancies, following similar negotiations with trade
unions in Germany and Austria.
Through the new agreement, the Italian
redundancy program will include a voluntary pre-retirement plan with access to
the financial sector Solidarity Fund, as well as a UniCredit commitment to hire
1,300 employees over the next three years, a measure intended to promote
positive generational turnover. The agreement also includes the establishment
of a joint committee with trade unions, which will focus on the work
organization and help ensure optimal implementation of the new industrial
plan and monitor its affects on UniCredit’s operating model.
UniCredit also
agreed to allow restructuring in the current welfare offer, including measures
like merging the group’s Italian pension funds, revising existing recreation
centers, improving the health insurance offered and adding insurance for
employees who become unable to work due to disability. Finally, UniCredit will
also collaborate with the trade unions to generate new policies on work-life
balance and a new career path framework.
UniCredit characterized the agreement with the
Italian trade unions, as well as the agreements with their German and Austrian
counterparts, as an opportunity to balance the redundancies against its will
and need to ensure employee engagement and motivation.
