The strike by employees of AVIBRAS, a company that manufactures defense equipment for Brazil, lasted about 24 hours. The company entered into judicial recovery last Friday (18) due to the impacts caused by the pandemic on cash.
To end the strike, the employees held an assembly with the management of AVIBRAS, which approved two months of job stability for the employees. In addition, the 24 hours of downtime will be paid.
The strike was a way for employees to react to the layoffs of 420 people from AVIBRAS last Friday (18).
“A question mark remains in the minds of all workers, whether they will remain employed or not. They were all taken by surprise and layoffs occurred in all sectors”. Said Weller Gonçalves, president of the Metallurgist Union of São José dos Campos.
According to AVIBRAS, the company had a drastic drop in revenue from the pandemic, and since 2020 it has accumulated quarterly losses totaling BRL 395 million. For this reason, around 400 employees were dismissed in Jacareí and Lorena (SP). Previously the company employed 1400 people.
AVIBRAS is known for being among the main manufacturers of Brazilian defense material, despite the fact that 85% of its production is concentrated in exports to partner countries. Some of the equipment produced, such as rockets and rocket launchers missiles, are not manufactured by other Brazilian companies, being the only national company that supplies the government.
One of the company's main products is the STARS, a ground-to-ground Artillery Rocket System. This system is capable of launching rockets, guided rockets, ballistic missiles and tactical cruise missiles, of different calibers, from the same platform, at distances between 9 and 300 km.
In 2021 alone, the company had a 73,7% drop in its turnover, compared to 2019. A large part of the damage comes from the postponement of orders placed by partner countries in the Middle East. More data was not publicly provided by the company, due to secrecy in purchases from foreign countries for military equipment.
The company's production and headquarters are concentrated in cities in the interior of São Paulo, such as Jacareí, Lorena and São José dos Campos, where the company's headquarters are located. FAB is the manufacturer's biggest partner with various technology development agreements.
With information from Brazil Agency - EBC
