Fiat to send home some 1,800 more employees in Feb

TURIN, Italy (Reuters) - Fiat (FIA.MI) will temporarily lay-off administrative and commercial staff at its key car division as part of a drastic adjustment to the weak market, sending some 1,800 people home for up to two weeks in February.

The measure taken by the Italian industrial group will involve 1,158 employees from the car division and 650 from another division called Fiat Powertrain, which handles motors and gearboxes, according to a group spokesman.

In recent months, Fiat has been sending home thousands of its blue-collar workers for up to six weeks as a dramatic drop in sales has forced it to shut down its factories throughout the country.

Similar action has been taken by other car makers.

The latest measure taken by Fiat is the first to involve white-collar workers since the group started temporarily shutting down its factories last year, the spokesman said.

For the first week in February, 1,158 of these workers will stop work. For the second week, 746 of that number will be off work.

The 650 employees at Fiat Powertrain will be away from work for two weeks.

A smaller number of blue-collar workers will also be affected.

All 1,800 white-collar workers will take unused holidays from the previous year as well as get reduced pay under Italy's "cassa integrazione" system, which relies on funds from the group and the Italian state.