!NEW! Opel España Announces 1,400 New Hires by 2018

• More than 25 percent of current workforce to be replaced in the next four years
• Aim is to rejuvenate staff, improve job opportunities and to reduce youth unemployment
• Agreement with INAEM (Aragón Employment Institute) for pre-selection of candidates

New cooperation: Luisa Fernanda Rudí, President of the Aragón Government and Antonio J. Cobo, General Director of General Motors España signed the agreement

Opel España is rejuvenating its workforce: More than 25 percent of the current staff of the Figueruelas (Zaragoza) plant will be replaced over the next four years. During this time, Opel will hire more than 1,400 new employees. The new members of the Opel team will take over positions made available by those born between 1954 and 1957 who are leaving to go into partial retirement. The project is part of a cooperation agreement with INAEM (Aragón Employment Institute), designating this organization responsible for Opel’s employee selection processes during the next four years.

The agreement was signed today by Luisa Fernanda Rudí, President of the Aragón Government and Antonio J. Cobo, General Director of General Motors España. The Minister of Economy and Employment of the Regional Government, Francisco Bono, also attended the ceremony.

Luisa Fernanda Rudí, President of the Aragón Government and Antonio J. Cobo, General Director of General Motors España.

“This initiative will help us find and promote talent, develope the employment opportunity capacities of our youth, as well as create a future for Aragón and for Spain,” said Antonio Cobo. “The agreement is part of the workforce rejuvenation plan that Opel España is executing in order to successfully meet the challenges of the future.”

“Opel is committed to a competitive business model based on sustainability and social, environmental and economic concerns which will offer the greatest possible benefit to the Spanish and Aragonese society. We want to make the community we are a part of a better place, and thereby contribute to creating a better tomorrow for future generations in Aragón and Spain,” Cobo added.

"The agreement is further evidence of the Opel España’s commitment in Aragon. It shows the confidence this important company has in our community and also the capacity of the Government of Aragon, INAEM in this case, to respond to the needs of the Aragonese economy, in particular, businesses and workers," said the President of Aragon, Luisa Fernanda Rudi.

Do it yourself: Luisa Fernanda Rudí, President of the Aragón Government, took the opportunity to test the facilities in the apprentice workshops in Zaragoza with Antonio J. Cobo, General Director von General Motors España offering expert advice. 

"General Motors/Opel España is fundamental to the Aragonese economy. Opel leads the powerful automotive sector of the region and is a benchmark of the industrial sector, both in terms of GDP growth and employment growth, leading the recovery of the Aragonese economy," she added.

Once job profiles are defined, the INAEM will be in charge of the selection process and determine the final group of candidates. Opel will then provide a theory/practice training program in its plant for workshop personnel pre-selected by the INAEM.

The course will take 160 hours. After satisfactory completion, participants will receive an official certificate as “Assembly expert for electrical and mechanical elements and components”. Opel has committed to incorporating a minimum of 60 percent of the participants who successfully complete the training into its workforce with a labor contract.

The application of active employment policies and the professional and occupational training linked to labor market requirements are among the basic instruments of a strategy oriented to increasing employment opportunities for new generations trying to enter the labor market. This is the fundamental guideline in the cooperation agreement between Opel and the Aragón Employment Institute.

The Spanish plant has the largest production capacity of all Opel group factories in Europe. It is one of the biggest employers in Spain and has produced more than 11.9 million units since it was opened in 1982. About 90 percent of the annual production is exported, with main markets being the UK, Germany, Italy and France.

The Zaragoza plant plays a key role in the current Opel product offensive, which will launch 27 new models and 17 new engines by 2018. Opel rose to number three on the passenger car market in Spain in 2014 with 66,700 registered vehicles and a market share of 7.8 percent.