A new collective agreement, which will be in force until the end of 2012, has been signed at ArcelorMittal Ostrava.
“This year’s bargaining was very long and difficult. We are happy to have been able to agree with the TU representatives to a compromise that is acceptable for both the parties. For employees this means a guarantee of maintaining a good standard of living, for the employer a facility to deal with the current tough economic situation,” said HR Director Ctirad Lolek about the pre-agreement negotiations.
Both parties have agreed on the part of the collective agreement that deals with wages and salaries for 2010. “Not only will the level of wages and salaries be maintained, but a single payment of additional 3000 crowns per employee (approximately 10% of the average income) will be made to cover the increasing cost of living,” added Lolek.
Company management and the TU representatives have also agreed to further enrich the employee social program, notably to increase the pension scheme contribution of the employer.
“In 2009, the contribution was 5540 crowns per employee, which amounted to nearly 36 million. This year we are increasing the employer’s contribution by a hundred crowns a month,” explained Lolek.
Under the collective agreement, each employee of ArcelorMittal Ostrava is entitled to a five-week holiday (plus one extra week off and reduced working hours for certain professions), to above-standard paid time off, to a redundancy payment of up to 13 average salaries, and to special bonuses when retiring or reaching an important working anniversary. The employer also makes a contribution to the employee pension scheme, recovery holidays, and health programs and provides financial aid to employees in difficult situations.
On behalf of company management, the new collective agreement was signed by Augustine Kochuparampil, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Josef Buryan, CTO and Vice-chairman of the Board of Directors, and Ctirad Lolek, HR Director and Member of the Board of Directors. On behalf of the Trade Union, the agreement was signed by Vítězslav Prak, Chairman of the Trade Union Council, and Stanislav Chmelík, Chairman of the Trade Union Organizations.
ArcelorMittal Ostrava a.s. is the largest steelmaker in the Czech Republic and part of the world’s largest steel group, ArcelorMittal. Its yearly capacity is 3 million tonnes of steel. It exports approximately 50% of its output to more than 80 countries. The company has 5950 employees; the total number of employees including the subsidiaries is more than 9300. In the fiscal year of 2008, the company generated a consolidated profit (after taxation) of CZK 6.077 billion.