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Enzo and the unions...

Discussion in 'Vintage (thru 365 GTC4)' started by donv, Dec 19, 2020.

  1. donv

    donv F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed Owner

    Jan 5, 2002
    19,924
    Portland, Oregon
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    Don
    #1 donv, Dec 19, 2020
    There is a great article in the Canada section about Ferrari owners in Canada, published in 1971:

    https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/so-who-needs-a-ferrari-1971-article.633919/

    Buried in a sidebar is this little anecdote about Enzo, which I found fascinating:

    "Last year, labor trouble wracked the Italian auto industry. When it came Enzo Ferrari's time to deal with union demands at his plants he heard them out quietly, then opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a revolver. He slid it across the table to the union negotiators. "You know me," said Ferrari. "I do not live like an aristocrat, like a millionaire. My whole life is the car. Better you should shoot me than ask me to accept your impossible demands." The union backed off and Ferrari had a relatively trouble-free year."
     
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  2. wolfchen75

    wolfchen75 Karting

    Aug 7, 2004
    124
    Bridgehampton
    #2 wolfchen75, Dec 27, 2020
    an apocryphal story , Ferrari SEFAC had numerous labor troubles in the 'red" years in the 1970's as did every Italian firm large or small ,
     
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  3. thepinkumbrella

    thepinkumbrella F1 Veteran

    Feb 26, 2006
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    Paul Harris
    #3 thepinkumbrella, Dec 28, 2020
    Watch the documentary ’Agnelli’.
    Done by HBO.
    Not only are there period videos and images of the 375 and 365 P that Agnelli owned there’s great insight to the unrest that affected Italy at that time.
    FIAT was attacked massively but it appears Ferrari got away relatively unscathed.

    Paul
     
  4. wolfchen75

    wolfchen75 Karting

    Aug 7, 2004
    124
    Bridgehampton
    #4 wolfchen75, Dec 31, 2020
    I was there in the 1970's and labor troubles were endemic even in Maranello , also by then FIAT was heavily involved in road car production and many sub contractors had difficulties too , not a pleasant time in Italy for a capitalist. Regio Emila was very red (communist not tifosi)
     
  5. donv

    donv F1 World Champ
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    Jan 5, 2002
    19,924
    Portland, Oregon
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    Don
    #5 donv, Dec 31, 2020
    I'm sure that's true, and the story is probably too good to be true. However, for context, they would have been talking about 1969-70, before Fiat got as involved, and it seems possible that labor issues got worse as the 70s went on.
     

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  6. italiancars

    italiancars F1 Rookie

    Apr 18, 2004
    2,674
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    #6 italiancars, Jan 1, 2021
    In the early 70s Sports Illustrated did a feature article on Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini, DeTomaso about how they were producing in the heart of the Communist Party of Italy for Rich Capitalist. As late as the mid 90s the Hammer and Sickle was still prominent around Modena with it being spray painted on the Water Towers in front on the Maserati factory
     

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