Management of the Loss-Making Vinka Fails to Find Common Ground with Unions

What is happening with Fortenova’s company Vinka plus from Jarmina near Vinkovci, we tried to find out after the portal danica.hr, according to unofficial information from union circles, reported that the Management decided to close the frozen products packaging factory. The portal states that the factory has as many as 14 production lines and a large warehouse – a cold storage, and reportedly around a hundred people could be left without jobs.

The story is quite similar to that of the fate of Eko Biograd, which we recently wrote about, with the difference that we still do not have information on whether Vinka plus will also change ownership. We asked the Fortenova group, but we did not learn much this time either. Namely, in the text published on danica.hr, it was stated that ‘the Management announces the trimming of numerous jobs and the shutdown of operations’, but Fortenova did not confirm this, only stating that the company has been incurring significant losses for many years.

– Currently, processes are underway to optimize operations and prevent further accumulation of losses – Fortenova responded.

Neither the Workers’ Council of Vinka nor the PPDIV Union has any official knowledge about job cuts and the shutdown of certain operations, says PPDIV president Denis Paradiš. He emphasizes that it is the employer’s duty to inform workers of such intentions, as well as to conduct consultations with the Workers’ Council in such cases.

Easter Greeting

– We learned about this news, just like you, from written media and internet portals, which is a sufficient indicator of how much the employer cares about its workers. Something similar happened in Eko Biograd where employment contracts were transferred to a new employer without the knowledge of the workers, and workers were left a notice on the table not to come to work, without any prior consultation with the Workers’ Council or the Union – says Paradiš.

Fortenova did not respond to our question about what will happen with Vinka, i.e., whether that company is also in the process of being sold, or if negotiations are ongoing with potential buyers for its takeover. The PPDIV union, which also sought this information from Fortenova, was unable to answer that question, guided by the experience with Eko Biograd.

– In response to our inquiry to the owner, we received information that there is no union operating in the Fortenova group and that we should address all inquiries to the Management of Vinka plus. Furthermore, the Fortenova group has no obligation to inform union branches and the union headquarters about plans for the sale or purchase of a particular company. A social partner to be desired. The employer could not send a nicer greeting to its workers on the occasion of Easter – says Denis Paradiš, president of PPDIV.

However, Fortenova claims that they are currently conducting regular negotiations with the Union regarding a new Collective Agreement.

– The goal is to increase salaries for all our employees while aligning other rights and rules with those prevailing in the market. In the context of negotiations, the Union has legitimate methods of pressure, including media pressure, but the company will not abandon its intention to equalize the rules with those that other market players have had for many years – Fortenova stated.

But the PPDIV views the situation in Vinka plus differently. In response to our question about whether the negotiations between the Union and Management have failed, as reported by danica.hr, Paradiš claims that real negotiations never took place because the employer ignored all union calls for discussions, as well as the very initiative for collective bargaining.

Biograd Reprise?

– The Union had no choice and initiated mediation proceedings before the GSV. However, the employer also avoided mediation meetings, despite the mediators’ warnings that they are obliged to respond to them. Thus, at the first mediation meeting arranged by the GSV mediators in Vinkovci, the CEO Ivan Begović did not even show up. Interestingly, this gentleman was also the CEO of Eko Biograd where the approach to workers and the union was the same. At the second mediation meeting, Vinka employee Renata Grbavica appeared, but without written authorization to represent the employer in the mediation process. She refused to sign the minutes and accept the union’s proposals – says Paradiš.

At the third mediation meeting, the first man of PPDIV continues, Grbavica again came, this time with written authorization to represent Vinka, but the conversation again did not take place as she only accepted the Union’s proposals for amendments to the Collective Agreement. She stated that she must consult with the CEO on everything and that she cannot make any decisions on her own, nor provide answers to the questions posed.

At the next, fourth mediation meeting, Dražen Opalić and Gordana Odrljin, employees of the Fortenova group, appeared with written authorization to represent Vinka in the mediation process. But instead of discussing the Union’s proposals, the two of them, claims Paradiš, spoke about the difficult situation in Vinka and the years of accumulating debt. That meeting ended unsuccessfully because, says Paradiš, ‘the employer had neither the will nor the desire to consider our proposals’.

– From all of the above, it is clear that the story we saw in Eko Biograd is repeating itself, and we have no reason to believe the employer that this time the scenario for our members will be different – says Paradiš.

Annual Leave

Therefore, after the unsuccessful conclusion of the mediation process, Paradiš continues, a meeting of Union members was held yesterday (April 14) in Vinka, and a procedure was initiated for a referendum on declaring a strike. The referendum is expected to be held by the end of this week.

– The employer sent Vinka workers home on annual leave without issuing them written decisions. If they do not receive decisions retroactively, the workers will return to work. Due to the aforementioned issues, we requested an urgent meeting at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister David Vlajčić – said Paradiš.

Of course, Fortenova does not want to talk about a possible sale of Vinka (if such interest exists) until an agreement with a potential buyer is reached. However, it really seems that the story with Eko Biograd is repeating itself because workers have the right to know whether there will be a reduction in the number of jobs, regardless of whether the company is being sold or not.

By the way, we requested data from the Fortenova group about the business operations of Vinka plus in the past year to confirm that the company is in a difficult state. We did not receive an answer to that question either, but according to data from Poslovna Hrvatska, Vinka plus had revenues of 9.1 million euros and a loss of as much as 3.7 million euros in 2023. From 2019 to the end of 2023, it accumulated as much as 15.5 million euros in losses. There are about 160 employees (data from 2023, PH) whose average net salary two years ago was 980 euros net.