What does the agreement between management and unions contain?

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The announcement came last Tuesday, September 24, like a violent blow to all employees of Solvay in Salindres, north-east of Alès, in the Gard.

12 CDIs saved

Since then, a very harsh social conflict had been established between employees and management. Access to the site was blocked. The factory was at a standstill.

Negotiations took place irregularly between the different unions and the group’s national management. They were partially completed on Thursday October 10. Contacted by telephone for Actu.frDamien Olry, central union delegate for the CGT on site, returns to what he describes as “ partial agreement ».

“On the 68 permanent contracts removedfor now 12 are saved», assures the thirty-year-old who refutes the term “okay”. The unions also obtained the “payment of a supra-legal dismissal bonus for 40,000 euros per employee far from 10 000initially announced,” continues the Gard trade unionist.

Of the proposed reclassification

The announcement made yesterday is not an end in itself. “Negotiations will continue until the end of November at the rate of 2 to 3 per month . We need to know what we are going to do with the other employees here,” says the thirty-year-old.

For future ex-Solvay employees agreeing to move, reclassification proposals within the group will be quickly offered to them. A specialized firm will be present in Gard to work there in the coming weeks.

The site will still close

The agreement officially signed on Thursday October 10 does not change anything from the initial announcement. The Salindres site will close permanently in less than 18 months.

“What was validated yesterday only allows the resumption of activity here in Salindres. The site had been down for two weeks. There, the boiler room is restarted. The platform is relaunched. Production will be able to gradually resume during the weekend of October 12 and 13,” confides the union delegate.

“A scandal to avoid”

Less than a month after the announcement of the closure, the young Gardois is not losing his temper. “They want to close Salindres as quickly as possible to avoid a major environmental and health scandal. They do everything to avoid that,” certifies Damien Olry.

An attitude which dismays as much as it revolts Solvay employees. “The discussions have been very tense and they will continue.Here, all the employees are exhausted, tired on the one hand and above all totally disgustedto lose their job and especially in this way,” concludes, irritated, Damien Olry.

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