To reassure about the future of his factories in France, Carlos Tavares tours the Stellantis sites. After Sochaux (Doubs), on October 3, the general director of the car manufacturer went to Rennes, Monday, November 18, for the pre-series start of a new SUV, replacing the current C5 Aircross.
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After assuring Italian parliamentarians that there were no closures or layoffs planned in the Peninsula, Mr. Tavares was also clear about France: “Each site has a model to produce at least until 2028, and for the majority until 2030-2032. » No closures within three years therefore, including in Poissy (Yvelines). But beyond that, there is no certainty: “Guarantees do not exist in today’s Western automotive world,” warns the manager. He does not hide the fact that the current occupancy rate of European factories is not satisfactory.
On the La Janais site, south of Rennes, his comments did not alleviate concerns. The teams are preparing to switch production from the old version of the C5 Aircross to the new one, presented at the Paris Motor Show. Sales will begin in the second half of 2025. But what will happen to their factory after this model? “For lack of recruitment, our gray hair factory becomes a white hair factory, says Didier Picard, CFE-CGC delegate for the site. It is urgent to hire and renew generations to ensure the future of the site, beyond the replacement of the C5 Aircross”.
Frugal recipe
The CFDT, represented by Christine Virassamy, shares the same fear: the average age is 52 years old, and more than 800 workers out of 1,000 are 58 years old or over. They would have liked to hear Carlos Tavares announce the arrival of another model and, why not, new hires. “Everything is possible, but it is not planned”he only declared during a briefing with the press. It is currently planned that the factory will get rid of 200 temporary workers at the end of 2024, while waiting to recall them in September 2025, for the ramp-up of the new C5 Aircross.
To obtain this model, the Rennes factory had to demonstrate its competitiveness in terms of costs and quality. It was not won. “ If the team had not taken responsibility to transform itself as it did, we would not be here today,” greeted Carlos Tavares. In 2015, the factory still occupied more than 220 hectares and employed 4,500 people, for only 68,000 cars produced. Nine years later, its surface area was halved and, with 2,000 people, it produced 75,000 vehicles in 2023 (C5 Aircrosses and 5008s) and could rise to 100,000. “With our small volumes, we managed to rank third in terms of performance among all the group’s factories”note Christine Virassamy.
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