Stellantis International Newsletter No. 33 – May 2026

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Compared to recent years, more people took to the streets on May 1. In Germany, the rallies drew about 500,000 participants. In the U.S., where May 1 is not a holiday, 500,000 people also took part in strikes and demonstrations. The demands were also directed against the fascist President Donald Trump.

An international militant movement is taking shape in the millions: Over the past three years, at least 60 million people worldwide have participated in workers’ struggles and solidarity actions against the genocide in Gaza, the attacks on Venezuela and Rojava, Trump’s fascist policies, or the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and Lebanon. Hundreds of millions more have also taken part in union strikes.

May 21: The Right Response to Stellantis’ “Corporate Strategy”!

On May 21, corporate leadership plans to announce its “strategy” for more profit. Greater profits for those at the top mean intensified exploitation of us. We already know: investments are to be concentrated on just four brands (Fiat, Peugeot, Jeep, and RAM). The remaining ten brands are to be downgraded to regional significance. Within the group, in addition to the Poissy plant (France), four plants are deemed “excessive” and are to be handed over to Chinese corporations: delegations from Dongfeng have already been spotted at locations in France (Rennes), Spain (Madrid), Italy (likely Cassino), and Germany. The Madrid plant is set to be handed over to Leapmotor International starting in 2028. Hongqi is interested in production in Zaragoza. Leapmotor also plans to ramp up production in Europe; they are developing an Opel model in China and will have it produced in Zaragoza starting in 2028. Production of the Leapmotor B 10 will also begin there as early as this year.

Chinese capitalists are proceeding particularly aggressively: At the Chinese battery conglomerate CATL, colleagues report massive infringements on their rights, fascist management methods, disregard for legal regulations on working hours, suppression of works council activities, union-busting, etc. Elon Musk operates the same way at Tesla. European corporations look on enviously.

We declare war on this program! Chinese, U.S., and European workers together!

Let’s thoroughly assess the events of March 24 and step up our activities. For union-led and independent actions on May 21 during working hours and at the factory gates. An independent strike in all plants is necessary to bring down Stellantis’s horror program and enforce our demands.

On May 12, there will be a day of action organized by IG Metall in Rüsselsheim (Germany)—specifically against the threat to invoke the so-called “emergency clause” in the “Future Collective Bargaining Agreement” if the works council does not agree to the further elimination of 650 jobs.

This would defeat the fraudulent notion that we could supposedly buy job security by accepting wage cuts. The “Future Collective Bargaining Agreement,” which was intended to rule out layoffs for operational reasons until 2029, would become null and void. That would be a massive attack on all workers in Germany. The IAC Group Rüsselsheim and militant colleagues support this day of action. We are promoting and organizing union and independent actions on May 12 at all plants in solidarity with the workers in Rüsselsheim, as well as solidarity visits and messages of solidarity to Rüsselsheim.

The struggle in the U.S. also deserves our solidarity. The UAW union called for a strike vote at the Sterling Heights plant in Michigan, as more and more skilled jobs are set to be outsourced. Here, the mere threat of a strike was enough to force the capitalists to back down. Votes are also underway at two logistics plants in Denver and Los Angeles; in Denver, 97 percent voted in favor of a strike. The Coordination Group is happy to forward messages of solidarity.

Six European plants will face work stoppages in the coming weeks. This also affects many supplier companies. In some cases, models are being postponed, as with Alfa Romeo; in others, supply bottlenecks and sales problems are at play. The reorganization of international production is in the midst of an open crisis that is intensifying and deepening. This is being played out on our backs. Stellantis is investing primarily in the U.S., Latin America, and North Africa and intends to ruthlessly shed plants and jobs that do not yield maximum profit. Arms production is no alternative for workers. Young workers are particularly affected by the elimination of tens of thousands of apprenticeship positions and the closure of entire training workshops, and they are expected to bleed for imperialist wars. We link the struggle for our jobs with the struggle against imperialist wars and the war economy.

We are taking the initiative!

Decisions about our jobs and livelihoods are already being made—they aim to create a fait accompli. The workforces are then merely informed—as late as possible and as piecemeal as possible, often only through the media. We’re supposed to just swallow this bitter pill, think only of our individual jobs, and look for a personal way out. But we won’t just sit back and wait. We’re setting our demands and organizing our struggle ourselves.

The day of action in March showed that this is possible. But it also showed where we’re still falling short: more binding cooperation, more active colleagues, more international coordination. A company-wide independent strike does not happen on its own; rather, the forces for it must be built up, we must train together for it, and our experiences must be evaluated.

Now it is crucial to strengthen our connections, win over more colleagues, and prepare the next actions together.

Our common program:

No plant closures, no layoffs—no plant stands alone!

For a 30-hour workweek with full wage compensation across the group!

Long live international solidarity!

For the preservation and expansion of our rights and freedoms – For a full legal right to strike in all matters!

Workers of all countries, unite!