SOCIAL. Two weeks after the change of name from the former Leader Price, which became Miamland City, the fate of the staff remains pending court judgments. The wages owed have still not been paid.
It was on December 20, on the eve of the winter solstice, that the store reopened. Epilogue of an autumn where the employees will have seen the leaves fall, but not their salaries. Since the summer, the Leader Price in the Noue district (which has since become Miamland City) has been a ghost supermarket.
The manager Imène Aoufi is still conspicuous by her absence, and the employees have too little work to justify their presence. They are still here, at the very beginning of 2025. Because the situation has not changed: they must come so as not to be characterized as abandonment of post.
And then they have work, a little. The store is stocked: “We were notified this morning, at 11:30 a.m., that a delivery would be made early this afternoon. At 2:30 p.m., we were delivered. » On the pallets, branded products, and a lot of costs. “It remains to be seen how we are going to dispose of all this. The customers do not rush. The expiry dates are short, we should sell it…”worries an employee.
Dead end
With 2025 just beginning, staff are hoping for a more positive year. “We spent the holidays without pay. Nobody can accept this. We were paid €1,000 on December 24 as salary. This does not correspond to our contracts, and it is very far from repairing the damage we have suffered for several months. » Fatalists, employees have seen their situation get bogged down for too long: “If someone had told me that we would still be here in 2025, I would not have believed it. We have had no hope since the end of August, except for a court to put an end to the joke. »
The hearing on Thursday, December 12, 2024, at the industrial tribunal, was postponed to February 13. While waiting for news from the competent courts – and a possible liquidation ordered by the commercial court – employees say they no longer count on elected officials. “The City was in direct contact with the manager, and was unable to get her to relent. The store is not even closed, we come to work without receiving a salary. Until proven otherwise, the balance of power is always in favor of the manager”they estimate.
The latter continues to supply the store, as best she can. How are the various costs (supply, electricity, etc.) covered, knowing that turnover is low? “We have the right to wonder when and how suppliers are paid, since we are not”point out an employee.
Ervan Couderc
Repolish the facade
Thursday December 19, 2024, employees discovered a new brand in their workplace. Exit Leader Price, place in Miamland City. Miamland boasts 30,000 references in its product range and a catalog of 1,200 national brands. Depending on its size (from 30 to 1,000 m2) and its location, a franchised store would achieve an annual turnover of €300,000 to €4,000,000.
A difficult result to obtain, in the current conditions, in Saint-Dizier. “We were not even informed of a change of brand. We discovered Miamland overnight. On opening day, we displayed prices on the shelves, in broad daylight. Nothing has been prepared. And above all, nothing was done to make it work. There was a change of brand, but no advertising aimed at potential customers”relates an employee.
