On December 21, 2017, about 1.000 workers out of the total workforce of 4.200 carried out a wildcat strike at the Ford plant in Craiova, Romania. The Ford Automobile Craiova union had signed a contract that triggered protests amongst the workers. In that agreement, overtime bonus is being cut and flexible shift plans are being established.

To the anger amongst the workers also contributed the fact that the government practically abolished the employers share of the costs of health insurance and social benefits and pushed those onto the employees who now have to pay 37,25% of their income for social benefits, WSWS reports. „The contract agreed to by the union translates to the equivalent of a 22% pay cut, when this tax hike is factored in.“

"While Eastern Europe has long been used as a Mexican-style cheap labor platform and to extract wage concessions from workers in the West, over the last year there has been a rising tide of militant strikes, including Fiat workers in Serbia and VW workers in Slovakia." According to WSWS there has hardly been any coverage of the Craiova strike. "Neither the IG Metall union in Germany or the United Auto Workers in the US has issued any statements." (World Socialist Website WSWS)