Glass workers fear for the future of a production facility.
Staff at O-I's Barcelona facility were originally told the plant would stop production for four months due to the ongoing market situation.
Now the shutdown has been extended for a further five months leading to speculation among staff about their futures.
Workers were originally told in a group notice in July that due to the ongoing market situation and an accumulation of stock, that the oven at the facility would be shutdown between August 5 and November 25 this year.
The notice said that, despite the company taking action to reduce stock, the measures hadn’t worked.
"The market situation with regard to bottle sales is not quite as expected at the beginning of the year, and although we hope that the trend will change in the last quarter of the year, we have to be prudent and flexible to protect our industrial activity."
A further notice issued to staff last month warned that the furnace shutdown is now likely to continue until March 2025, leading to fears as to when the site will actually reopen.
O-I has been approached for comment.
The container glassmaker had made clear in recent weeks its intention to close at least six furnaces within its global portfolio, with further news specifying which furnaces would be shutdown expected before the end of this month.