The famous “Magic of Kinder surprise”It’s right here: enclosed in those 5 euros per hour reserved for workers and workers that pack the most famous chocolate products in Italy. In recent months we had followed the first riots of the workers (yes, the staff is largely female) of Proteco Srl, A company that packs its eggs Kinder, Mon Chéri and Raffaello for the Multinational Ferrero.
On September 26, in fact, in front of the gates of the Proteci di Castagnito, in Neive in the province of Cuneo, there was the first strike which, only a week later, moved in front of the Ferrero gates to Alba, with a clear message: “Ferrero contracts: 30 years of exploitation. We want full time and a dignified salary“.
We talked about it here: the real surprise of the Kinder eggs? Workers exploited and pay 5 euros per hour, the scandal of the Ferrero contracts
Since then, a USB union has emerged through the USB union dispute on remunerationwhich in some cases barely came to 5 euros the hour (compared to the 17 billion turnover of the giant of Alba by Giovanni Ferrero).
What happened
The story has deep roots: initially hired by the GTPM cooperative, the workers subsequently passed under the management of Proteco Srl, a company specialized in automation, which has decided to apply the national multiservice collective agreement, considered less adequate to the tasks actually carried out. This contractual choice has contributed to keeping the wages on minimum levelsAlthough the workers are engaged in fundamental activities for the confectionery production of Ferrero, such as the packaging of the well -known surprise Kinder eggs.
Faced with this situation, the USB union (basic union union) proclaimed the first strike in the history of these workers on September 26, 2024, with a garrison in front of the Proteci gates. Subsequently, as we said, on October 4, 2024, the protest moved directly to the Ferrero plant in Alba, underlining the responsibility of the multinational in the contract chain. The main requests of workers include the application of a collective agreement adequate to the tasks carried out, the recognition of a fair remuneration and the stabilization of the contractual hours with transition to full time.
In these days, the Bausardo & Partners Law Firm of Turin has presented an official warning to the companies involved: GTPM, Proteco and Ferrero Italia, the latter considered jointly responsible as the first client. According to Enzo Miccoli of the USB, on the basis of a temporary count, one million euros would be necessary to remedy the unrecognized pay positions. The union also requests transparency on the details of the contract and a mansionary with clear pay positions.
The workers now promise other events and do not exclude to bring the case to the Inspectorate of Labor and, if necessary, drag the company to court. This mobilization represents an important step in the struggle for the rights of contractors of the contracts, often invisible but essential in the production chain of large multinationals such as Ferrero.
