A thousand in the square protest against Electrolux closure in Cerreto d'Esi

A national demonstration with about a thousand participants took place this morning, September 15, in Cerreto d'Esi to protest against Electrolux's industrial plan. The plan involves the closure of the Cerreto plant and about 1,450 redundancies across Italy. The workers, on an eight-hour strike, marched with banners demanding the right to work and dignity, also coming from other Italian sites of the group in Solaro, Porcia, Treviso, and Forlì.

Unions and numerous politicians participated in the protest, including the Governor of Marche Francesco Acquaroli and the national secretary of Italian Left Nicola Fratoianni. The protesters are calling on the multinational to withdraw the plan, described as "unacceptable," and on the government to keep its promises. The company is accused of transferring production to Thailand and China while demanding further sacrifices from Italian workers.

The Electrolux dispute originates from the announcement of the industrial plan presented on May 11, 2026, which envisioned a deep restructuring involving the closure of the Cerreto d'Esi plant and the elimination of approximately 1,450 jobs across all Italian sites. The Cerreto plant, which employs 170 people, is the smallest in the group in Italy, and its closure would have a strong impact on the social fabric of the Marche hinterland.

Since May 11, unions and the company have held seven meetings without the multinational substantially modifying its proposal. Today's protest represents the culmination of months of mobilization. The Fim, Fiom, and Uilm unions denounce that, while the company is relocating part of its production to Asia, no alternative industrial initiative is being proposed for Cerreto. The government, through Minister Urso, had initially defined the plan as "unacceptable," but according to the protesters, it has not subsequently exerted sufficient pressure to change it.