A number of people are beginning to express concerns over the state of the Serbian metal industry, with some going as far as to say that the industry is practically non-existent in Novi Sad and other areas.

The head of the Vojvodina committee of the metal workers trade union Vlado Miljus claims that metal industry employees are now going to turn towards the government to repair the ailing industry and correct bad privatisations that they believe has caused much of the crisis.

The group have also called for strike action on October 25th if the government fail to provide them with a plan of action for the industry’s recovery.

Vlado Miljus commented “Metal workers throughout Serbia are having a hard time. They used to be among the carriers of the development, and the starkest example of the fall of that system is precisely Novi Sad, where 22,000 metal workers earned their living 15 years ago, and today there are barely 1,500.”

He has also commented on four companies who are suffering due to restructuring, namely; Majevica from Backa Palanka, Petar Drapsin from Novi Sad, Utva from Pancevo and Specijalna Vozila from Sombor. He claims “All four companies have a market and make quality products. The trouble is the lack of funds to buy raw material and for other costs. The decision by a court of appeals stating the companies have to provide from their own sources the funds needed to pay off redundant employees hit us particularly hard.”

He now argues that the government needs to provide the money required to pay off a range of severance packages and salaries if the metal industry in the country is to survive.