Pope Admonishes Fiat: Keep Jobs in Italy

ROME — A nationwide strike by Fiat workers in Italy, who stopped work on Wednesday for four hours to protest the planned closing of a plant in Sicily, was strengthened in its aims by support from a highly placed source. From his bully pulpit at the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday called on Fiat chief Sergio Marchionne to keep jobs in Italy.

The Holy Father, speaking during Sunday public prayers, said the global economic crisis "requires a great sense of responsibility on the part of everyone: entrepreneurs, workers and governing officials." The Pope commented that "everything possible must be done to save jobs that are in danger, especially in areas in crisis such as Termini Imerese," European media reported.

Fiat has 80,000 workers in Italy, and at least two-thirds of those stopped work in the Wednesday action. The move was called for by the three main metalworker unions in Italy and involved all of the Fiat Group's Italian plants, including Ferrari and Maserati.

The workers object to Marchionne's five-year plan, under which some 30,000 workers will be laid off for a series of two-week periods, and the Termini Imerese, Sicily, plant is set to close in 2011. The automaker says it costs too much to get parts down to the island, adding some $1,400 to the cost of each vehicle.

Fiat's executives will meet Friday at the ministry of economic development in Rome. The automaker reportedly has received seven offers for the Termini Imerese facility, the French business paper Les Echos reported on Wednesday. An interesting one: Gianmario Rossignolo, representing Pininfarina, which has just purchased the De Tomaso marque. Italian EV startup Keplero; Sicilian businessman Simone Cimoni, whose investment firm Cape is a partner with Indian EV maker Reva; and FAW-Hong Kong Taihe of China are also supposedly interested. Three dark horses named by the paper are the Ikea furniture chain, the Auchan "hypermarket" chain and architect Massimiliano Fuksas, who has a movie studio in mind for the property.

Inside Line says: The moral high ground is often situated high above the stark realities of business. — Laura Sky Brown, Correspondent