MEP Iuliu Winkler (UDMR, EPP) criticized on Thursday what he called the "lack of information" in the case of the production stoppage at the ArcelorMittal Hunedoara steel plant, noting, however, that the steel and aluminum industry is "in great danger" throughout the European Union, one of the reasons being the taxes imposed by the United States or the overproduction in China, inform Agerpres.
He said that although he views things subjectively, because he lives in the municipality of Hunedoara, the way in which the production stoppage at the steel plant was announced, through a press release and on a Friday afternoon, is "inadmissible".
"My dissatisfaction with what happened in Hunedoara is related, first of all, to the lack of information. (...) It is inadmissible to issue a press release of such weight, of such importance about the closure of a production unit, with or without a history of decades or centuries, with or without employees of the order of 500 or 1,500 or 50 people, it is inadmissible to issue such a press release on a Friday afternoon. And this, obviously, could already denote certain intentions of lack of transparency. (...) There are European rules for corporate transparency. I cannot, as a MEP, hold anyone accountable, because I do not have this fall", declared Winkler.
The MEP voiced hope that "the lack of transparency will end" and that the community will find out the correct information, from the provisions of the collective labor agreement to the way in which the privatization contract was respected.
"I hope for one thing, that the lack of transparency will stop. The entire community, not just us politicians, (...) must find out the correct information and as it is. The collective labor agreement, the provisions of this agreement, if necessary, go back to the privatization agreement, let's see what were the elements of maintaining production, of technology, if all obligations were fulfilled over time. This would be interesting to find out. It would be interesting to find out if the company wants to appeal to the Globalization Adjustment Fund. This is a European Union fund. Support can be requested when forced layoffs occur due to the European or global economic situation", the European parliamentarian pointed out.
Iuliu Winkler also said that the steel and aluminum sector is in big trouble because of American tariffs, but also because of China, which has an over-capacity in production that it can increase very quickly.
"The main reason for the global problems in the steel industry is China, because China produces about half of all the steel used globally, but it has over-capacity. So, they can produce 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% more in a few weeks. Just by pressing a single button. And you know very well that in China that button is a political button. It is a button that is pressed by the political leadership of the Chinese state, which also runs the Chinese economy. These are things that are very difficult to track, but there are things that a global company, such as ArcelorMittal, should and I am convinced that it already knows", concluded the European parliamentarian.
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