The closure of the Amis factory was approved by the labor inspectorate on January 17. In Guéret (Creuse), forty jobs will disappear. The first layoffs will not be official until February, but tension is already rising between the management of the automobile subcontractor and the employees, who are considering a strike.
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“The first letters will arrive in Februarysighs an employee. Many people have a knot in their stomach.“It is now official: on January 17, thea Regional Directorate of the Economy, Employment, Labor and Solidarity (Dreets) has approved the redundancy plan proposed by the automotive subcontractor Amis. The Lyon commercial court should validate, in the coming days, the closure of the Guéret factory, where forty people will see their jobs disappear.
“Even though we expected this decision, it's still difficulttestifies David Parlon, Force Ouvrière union representative. OIt takes our work, all the same.“The closure of the site in Creuse should only be effective in a month. On site, the atmosphere is very heavy. The staff recognizes it”idle” : “Working in these conditions is complicated. We work less, in degraded mode. There is fear as the deadline approaches.“
Faced with this situation, management sent a note to staff, demanding “that everyone returns to a normal level of production and work“. Recalling that “this may amount to an illegal strike, or even an obstacle to the operation of the company“, the letter threatens the people concerned with “disciplinary sanctions” and even evokes “dismissals without compensation“.
We still have customers to supply. We still have orders to fulfill.
-Philippe DufeutrelleDirector of Friends
“We are aware that in this disrupted context, it is difficult to get started 100%declares Philippe Dufeutrelle, the boss of Amis. But there is still a minimum. We still have customers to supply. We still have orders to fulfill. Employees have contracts: until the end, they expect remuneration; in return, we expect work from them.“
The management's note aroused the indignation of many employees. “It doesn't work, it's the icing on the cakeDavid Parlon gets carried away. We're angry, it's too heavy. They talk to us badly. What do they expect? There dismissal date is coming. The employees are worried, they can't give their all!“
In response, some of them are considering going on strike to demand a production bonus. “If we meet the objectives for the last weeks, we ask for an amountexplains the union delegate. During the negotiations of the dismissal plan, the supralegal bonus was refused to the dismissed workers. There, we say to ourselves that it would be the least we could do, to compensate.“
Of the forty employees at the Guéret factory, six are currently on sick leave. Employees met this Monday, January 20, to take stock of the progress. Several of them declared themselves willing to “block parts and machines“, if their hierarchy does not accede to their requests.
While waiting for the final closure of the factory, the Creuse prefecture is committed to supporting workers. A reclassification unit has been set up to help them find work. Between fifteen and twenty offers from Creuse companies have already been brought to the attention of employees.
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