Another footwear factory closes: 360 employees dismissed
Dismissal letters received by the workers from the company’s Human Resources office stated: "We notify you that, as a consequence of the closure of the establishment, we will no longer require your services as of 01/20/2025. The final settlement and severance payments will be deposited promptly in your respective salary accounts."
Employees of the DASS factory, located in Buenos Aires province, received the news while on vacation, as all staff were under a holiday schedule agreed upon by the footwear workers’ union UTICRA and the company due to the decline in activity.
The industrial group, with Argentine and Brazilian capital, manufactures sports footwear in Argentina for brands such as NIKE, ADIDAS, UMBRO, and FILA. It also has a plant in Eldorado, Misiones, and operates in 33 countries.
In Coronel Suárez, DASS took over the former GATIC factory in 2015 and managed contracts with NIKE and ADIDAS. In 2018, the company faced its first crisis due to the opening of imports and the fall in consumption, cutting the workforce from nearly 2,000 employees to just over 500 through voluntary retirements.
Production gained momentum again in 2022, increasing staff to around 850 through an agreement with ADIDAS. However, the situation worsened in the past year due to declining demand, high production costs, and less protection against imports.
The head of UTICRA (Union of Footwear Industry Workers), Agustín Amicone, warned about the severe crisis affecting the sector, stating, "We are going to inform Governor Kicillof to see if we can stop the closure and prevent employees from losing their livelihoods".
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