The government has announced that the outstanding earnings of employees at Liberty Galati, Liberty Tubular Products Galati, Romaero SA and Damen Shipyards Mangalia will be paid from the Guarantee Fund for the Payment of Wage Claims (FGPCS) by Easter.
The employees of Damen Shipyards Mangalia, Liberty Galati, Liberty Tubular Products Galati and Romaero SA will receive their outstanding salaries by Easter, after the Government approved, in an extraordinary meeting, the inclusion of these companies on the list of economic operators of strategic interest.
The measure allows the payment of outstanding revenues from the Guarantee Fund for the Payment of Salary Claims, the total amount allocated amounting to 257.7 million lei.
The Minister of the Economy, Irineu Darău, announced that the decision directly protects over 4,500 employees and keeps in operation essential industrial capacities for Romania’s economy. According to him, “more than 4,500 people will take their salaries and the strategic workforce will be retained”, given that Liberty Galati, Damen Shipyards Mangalia and Romaero were officially included in the list of economic operators of strategic interest.
“Through today’s decision, we directly protect thousands of jobs and keep in operation essential industrial capacities for Romania’s economy. At Liberty Galati we are talking about 2,787 direct employees and between 6,000 and 12,000 dependent jobs. A stoppage of activity could increase the local unemployment rate by approximately 1.8 percentage points. Liberty Tubular has 162 employees, Damen Shipyards Mangalia 1,017, and at Romaero 526 specialists from the aerospace and defense industry”stated Minister Irineu Darău.
Through the decision adopted by the Executive, outstanding salaries will be able to be paid including in situations of preventive arrangement or insolvency. For Liberty Galati and Liberty Tubular, companies in preventive arrangement, the amount provided is 168 million lei for 2,949 beneficiaries, for a maximum period of six months. For the insolvent companies, Damen and Romaero, 89.7 million lei are allocated for 1,543 employees, for a maximum period of seven months.
The Minister of Economy emphasized that these companies go beyond the status of large employers, having a critical role in industrial chains and in essential sectors of the economy.
The steel produced in Galati is used in construction, infrastructure and the manufacturing industry, Romaero’s activity is directly related to the maintenance and operation of air capabilities, and the Mangalia shipyard has an important role in the naval industry, both in production and in repairs.
According to the official, the loss of these industrial capacities would not only mean the closure of some companies, but also a greater dependence on imports, the disappearance of industrial skills that are difficult to rebuild and significant economic costs in the long term.
In this context, Irineu Darău insisted that the state must intervene when there is a risk of losing strategic capacities for the national economy.
“This decision is not about supporting a company, but about protecting a strategic interest: jobs, industrial skills and Romania’s capacity to produce. The state must intervene when the risk is the loss of industrial capacities that we cannot easily rebuild. It is a necessary step to keep essential industries functional and to strengthen Romania’s economic resilience”the minister emphasized.
Recently, the Government approved the methodological rules for the application of the GD amending Law 200/2006, so that the Guarantee Fund can also be accessed for the payment of steelworkers’ salaries.
