Fiat workers at the automaker’s Melfi plant in southern Italy will go on strike next week over Cristiano Ronaldo’s €105 million transfer from Real Madrid to Juventus.



Following reports that some of Ronaldo’s fees will be paid by Juventus’ parent company Exor, which also owns Fiat and Ferrari, the Unione Sindacale di Base decided to move forward in favor of a strike at FCA Melfi, said to last between July 15, and July 17.

The workers’ union is protesting the fact that while they’ve been forced to cut costs for years, the automaker is contributing millions to a single individual for a football club.

“It’s unacceptable that while FCA and CNHI workers continue to make huge economic sacrifices, the company then spends hundreds of millions of euros on the purchase of a player,” said the union in an official statement, as reported by Football Italia.

“We’re told that times are touch, that we need to resort to social safety nets, waiting for the launch of new models, which never arrive. And while workers and their families tighten their belts more and more, the company decides to invest a lot of money on a single human resource! Is this fair? It is normal for one person to earn millions, while thousands of families can’t even get to the middle of the month?”

“We’re all employees of the same owner, but this difference in treatment cannot and must not be accepted. The Fiat workers have made the company’s fortune for the last three generations, but in return they have only ever received a life of misery. The company should invest in car models that guarantee the futures of thousands of people, rather than enriching only one. That should be the objective, a company that puts the interests of their employees first. If it isn’t, it’s because they prefer the world of football, entertainment and everything else.”

“For the reasons described above, the Unione Sindicale di Base has declared a strike at FCA Melfi between 10pm on Sunday July 15 and 6pm on Tuesday July 17.”

Ronaldo will reportedly be paid €30 million ($35 million) over the next four years, while Juventus will send €105 million ($123 million) to Real Madrid in two installments.