ROME, Sept 16 (Reuters) - Italy must avoid special measures that could be interpreted as state aid for Alitalia workers, EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani said on Tuesday, as staff face job and wage cuts under an investor buyout of the airline.
Italy, which holds a 49.9 percent stake in Alitalia, wants to avoid accusations of illegal state aid as it tries to save the debt-ridden airline from collapse.
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government has promised the roughly 3,000 employees set to be laid off welfare benefits for seven years -- amounting to 80 percent of their base salary -- and the options of jobs at other public or private firms.
Tajani, a former Berlusconi spokesman, did not enter into the merit of that offer when speaking to the Italian parliament. He said only that Alitalia workers should not be given special treatment.
'There must not be ad hoc measures for the workers which could be seen as state aid, incompatible with European rules,' Tajani said.
The new company must be legally different than the old Alitalia, he said, and current Alitalia workers must not be given automatic precedence in hiring.
The European Commission is investigating whether Alitalia's 300 million euro ($425.8 million) emergency loan from the government earlier this year constituted illegal state aid.
Tajani said the commission would still take months to conclude its inquiry.
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte; Editing by David Cowell) ($1=.7046 Euro) Keywords: ALITALIA/EU tf.TFN-Europe_newsdesk@thomsonreuters.com cmr COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
Italy, which holds a 49.9 percent stake in Alitalia, wants to avoid accusations of illegal state aid as it tries to save the debt-ridden airline from collapse.
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government has promised the roughly 3,000 employees set to be laid off welfare benefits for seven years -- amounting to 80 percent of their base salary -- and the options of jobs at other public or private firms.
Tajani, a former Berlusconi spokesman, did not enter into the merit of that offer when speaking to the Italian parliament. He said only that Alitalia workers should not be given special treatment.
'There must not be ad hoc measures for the workers which could be seen as state aid, incompatible with European rules,' Tajani said.
The new company must be legally different than the old Alitalia, he said, and current Alitalia workers must not be given automatic precedence in hiring.
The European Commission is investigating whether Alitalia's 300 million euro ($425.8 million) emergency loan from the government earlier this year constituted illegal state aid.
Tajani said the commission would still take months to conclude its inquiry.
(Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte; Editing by David Cowell) ($1=.7046 Euro) Keywords: ALITALIA/EU tf.TFN-Europe_newsdesk@thomsonreuters.com cmr COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
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