September 6, 2023.- The Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Héctor Gómez, traveled today to the factory of the Ceralto Siro Group in the Palentine town of Venta de Baños. Gómez has reinforced with this visit the support of the Government to its 200 workers, after the company committee reached an agreement with the multinational agri-food group to keep the plant open for at least four more years.
The agreement includes measures to ensure the productive activity of the center, which has been working on the production of biscuits for more than 50 years, as well as an investment plan that will take shape in the coming months and that will mean progressive improvements in the facilities and machinery of the factory.
For the minister, “the agreement reached between company and workers last August is beneficial for both parties and guarantees the economic development of this locality. I would also like to highlight the coordination between administrations, companies and unions with the aim of protecting jobs and boosting the economic development of the area.”
Héctor Gómez has once again thanked the good disposition and joint effort of Cerealto, the Company Committee of VB1 and the other institutions that facilitated the understanding between the company and the workers, such as the City Council of Venta de Baños and the Junta de Castilla y León. “I hope that, with the appropriate investments and the collaboration of all parties, this factory will continue to provide quality employment and industrial development to Venta de Baños and Castilla y León for many more years,” he added.
Effective work
On June 13, 2022, a Competitiveness Plan was signed to guarantee the future of the Cerealto Siro Group in Spain with the broad support of the workers. This Plan provided the opportunity for an industrial future for the company and guaranteed the work for the hundreds of families who perform it there.
This agreement represented a firm commitment to the economic and labor opportunities of rural Spain, in this case of Castilla y León, which is one of the priority lines of the government strategy.
The center is an example of diversity and inclusion: 50% of its professionals are women and guarantees professional development to almost 20 people at risk of exclusion. It is also a sample of the value that Cerealto brings to the territory, with its more than five decades of activity in the municipality and the approximately 2,000 jobs created in rural areas of Castilla y León.
Therefore, the main objective of the Ministry of Industry from the beginning of the negotiations was to find a viable solution for the company and guarantee the jobs.