The unions warn of the “drama” that the closure would mean for the region
CASTELLÓN, 31 May. (EUROPE PRESS) –
The Castellón company dedicated to the textile sector Marie Claire has announced its intention to close its plant located in Vilafranca and to request the declaration of bankruptcy voluntarily to proceed with the extinction of the company, as confirmed by union sources to Europa Press.
The firm’s management met this Tuesday with the works council, which it has informed of its intention to start the consultation period starting next Monday.
The company, which currently has a workforce of 214 people, has a Temporary Employment Regulation File (ERTE) active until next July for 130 workers at the plant located in Vilafranca, where some 90 currently work. people in production
From the company they have transferred to the representatives of the workers that the viability of the company with the current staff, which also has about 70 people between technicians and administrative staff in Castellón and Valencia, is “quite compromised”, a situation that the company It has dragged on “for some time,” according to the unions.
The representatives of the workers wait for the consultation period to open next Monday and, from there, to know the explanatory memory and the technical reports to know “the intentions of the company”.
In any case, they have indicated that at this time they do not know if the company’s intention is to launch a termination Employment Regulation File (ERE). “Until then, we will not have any more news, although we already know what all the indications are,” they specified.
Marie Claire was acquired in April 2021 by the company Think Textil -which has Inditex as its main client– in an operation endorsed by the Valencian Institute of Finance (IVF) through a financing plan on account of the fight against depopulation.
On the other hand, in June of last year, the company formalized with the Generalitat a financing operation worth 12 million euros approved within the framework of the Valencian Resilience Fund for strategic companies affected by the crisis.
Indeed, the person in charge of CCOO PV in the company, José María Gutiérrez, in statements to Europa Press, has highlighted this “important” operation that “seemed to guarantee the viability” of the company, although he has indicated that after the pandemic he suffered the “same low workload problem.” “The economic injection of the Generalitat came in handy and it seemed that the company was going to be viable, but it has had very bad luck due to the covid issue, we have not raised our heads,” he argued.
In any case, he has warned of the “drama” that the closure of this “historic company in the region” would mean, where it is “a source of income for a fairly important population.” “If this factory is removed, the region will be greatly affected,” he indicated.
“Where the industry disappears, depopulation appears, and we don’t know how that can be replaced,” he remarked, while stressing that the concern at this time in the workforce is “important” after “ten years of problems”. “The company became a leader with almost 1,000 workers, but currently it does not even reach 300. Somehow we could come to think of this sad end that we do not want,” he explained.
Marie Claire is a company from Castellón founded in 1907, with a long tradition and roots in the Valencian Community, specifically in the interior regions of Castellón. It began its activity more than a hundred years ago, dedicating itself from its origins to the manufacture and sale of stockings, an activity that over the years has diversified to also produce other textile products.
Marie Claire is one of the main engines of activity in the regions of La Plana Alta and Els Ports. The company from Castellón concentrates a high percentage of economic activity and employment in these regions, which is why it is considered strategic for the Valencian economy.
