Sanofi unions call for “indefinite strike” from Thursday

The trip of the Minister Delegate for Industry Marc Ferracci and the Minister of the Economy, Antoine Armand, on Monday to the Sanofi site in Lisieux (Calvados) did not calm the fever. According to information from BFM Business confirmed by Le Figarothe pharmaceutical group’s unions called for a “unlimited strike” from Thursday on all sites to protest against the desire to sell Opella, the subsidiary which produces Doliprane, to the American fund CD&R.

The CGT and the CFDT are at the origin of the movement, and the other unions must position themselves during the day to join the call for a strike. The CGT accuses Sanofi of “liquidate everything” in France and asks that the group retain a stake in the capital of Opella.

A question of “health sovereignty”

For its part, the CFDT calls for “a general strike movement from October 17 to express anger against the sale of Opella”on all the group’s sites – not just those in Opella, according to a leaflet consulted by AFP. “The simplest thing is to establish a moratorium and return to the subject, entrust to Figaro Humberto De Sousa, CFDT Sanofi coordinator. Ultimately, Opella must remain in the group. This sale is an economic aberration.”

The union, the majority at Sanofi (34%), believes that this is a “question of health sovereignty”. «We all experienced the Covid problem and we were very happy to have Doliprane. What will happen in the event of a new pandemic?», continues Humberto De Sousa. A gathering is planned at the Compiègne site (Oise) this Thursday, between 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Several political figures, including François Ruffin and Xavier Bertrand, should go there according to the CFDT.

On the sidelines of a trip to the Paris Motor Show, Emmanuel Macron affirmed that the government had “the instruments to guarantee that France is protected” with a view to a change in Opella’s capital. Among the obligations required, Marc Ferracci cites “maintaining the industrial footprint and industrial employment” on the French production sites of Lisieux and Compiègne, but also “commitments on production volumes” et “on research and development”, as well as the preservation of “the subcontractor ecosystem”.