MILAN, April 26 (Reuters) - The future of car manufacturing in Italy is at threat from a labour dispute which has shut down almost all of Fiat's car plants in the country, Fiat CEO Giuseppe Morchio said in a letter to staff on Monday.
"No can pretend to ignore that what is at stake here is the future of the Italian automobile industry, of the people who work in an important part of the economic recovery of our country," Morchio wrote in the letter.
He said the picketing of Fiat's Melfi car plant by workers demanding better pay and shift patterns was "illegal" and said Fiat believed a negotiated end to the dispute was the most responsible solution.