Bankrupt Slovakia Steel Mills in Strážske to dismiss most staff

Slovakia Steel Mills (SSM) in Strážske (Košice region), which has ended up in bankruptcy, will dismiss most of its 400 employees by the end of June, said Peter Mika from the labour office in Michalovce (Košice region). "Most of them will be finishing - more than 90 percent, apart from those who'll remain working at the factory as part of maintenance", said SSM trade union head Dušan Varga. Slovakia Steel Mills hasn't been in production since December, with a court approving its bankruptcy after an unsuccessful restructuring attempt. The company, a producer of reinforcing steel and wiring, was founded in 2007 as a subsidiary of Dutch company Steel Assets Management. The investment was funded from a loan provided by Czech Export Bank, which in May 2014 began selling its claims vis-a-vis SSM that emerged due to the company's failure to pay the agreed instalments. "It's possible that the company will be sold as part of the bankruptcy process and we'll continue working. Nevertheless, we've been told that we won't be able to return to work earlier than at the end of this year", said Varga.