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The new boss of Stellantis, Antonio Filosa, will lead the multinational from the United States. A historic first for the automotive company of European origin, which alerts the French unions of the multinational.
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His visit to Sochaux (Doubs) had been a good surprise for French employees, and more particularly Franc-Comtois. On May 28, Antonio Filosa, a new boss of Stellantis, chose the Sochalian factory as a place for her first visit as CEO of the automotive group.
As early as 2026, for its first full year as the group’s general manager at 14 brands, Antonio Filosa could earn $ 18 million (15.8 million euros). • © Etienne Laurent / AFP
A first encouraging first sign on the future commitments of Stellantis in France and in Europe? Nothing is less certain. Indeed, two weeks later, the newspaper Les Echos announced thatAntonio Filosa had chosen to lead the company from the United States and the City of Detroit. A first in the history of the company of European origin, resulting from the merger between the French PSA (Peugeot-Citroën) and the Italian Fiat.
For the listed company, whose head office is still located in the Netherlands, this is a major change. The predecessor of Antonio Filosa, Carlos Tavares, spent the majority of his time in Europe. The new CEO of Stellantis in North America therefore made the opposite choice for several reasons. The experience, first, since he has long directed the American branch of the group and therefore has his family in the United States.
But also for economic motivations, the American Stellantis market, long very promising for the group, having plunged in recent months with market share losses and an operating margin now below 10 %. The customs duties imposed by Donald Trump, while the company produced its parts in Mexico or Canada, also strongly penalized the company, which saw its action tumbling on the stock market.
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Stellantis’ net profit fell by 70% in 2024, but is nevertheless amounts to billion. • © Lionel Vadam / Maxppp
“Unfortunately, we expected it” regrets Benoît Vernier, CFDT union representative at Stellantis. “Management needed to send a strong signal to the USA, where the situation is worrying.” “At first glance, it is not necessarily a bad sign, because it is necessary to put the double bites in the United States” adds Jean-Paul Guy, CFTC union delegate of the Stellantis factory in Vesoul. “But that should not serve the group’s activities in Europe”.
There are also strong needs in Europe and France. So we will be vigilant. We are aware of being a multinational, but it will be necessary to maintain a balance between the different continents so that the European market does not go into the background.
Bilal Benchaa,
CFDT union delegate on the Stellantis site in Sochaux
In the words of all the union officials contacted by France 3 Franche-Comté, a fear: do not see the new CEO “in automatic steering mode” concerning the group’s strategy in Europe, while the issues, according to them, are still numerous. “We are in the full vagueness concerning his strategy” insists Philippe Diogo, union delegate Force Ouvrière on the site of Sochaux.
“Obviously we would like him to be closer to us, because it is an upheaval,” he admits. “But beyond its geographic location, we want to have employment about employment in France, investments in research and development, our adaptation to European Union decisions concerning electricity and environmental standards …”.
“There are needs in our European factories” takes up Bilal Benchaa, CFDT delegate. “In France, the average age of employees is around 50 years on the sites. In the coming years, there will be a lot of departures so we will need a substantial renewal and a significant job plan”.
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Stellantis Vesoul, in 2023. • © François Fernandez / France Bleu Besancon
Another concern: the arrival of Chinese vehicles at a lower cost that would come to “flood the European market” according to Jean-Paul Guy. As you can see, there are therefore many questions. And if the management of the company from the US does not currently have alarm, it remains to be seen if Antonio Filosa, geographically distant, will be able to hear and answer these local issues.
One thing is certain: it will complicate things in terms of social dialogue. Beyond the distance, it is not the same thing in Europe as in the United States. There, we will still lose proximity with our leaders
Benoît Vernier,
CFDT union delegate at Stellantis
“With M. Tavares, we still had some contacts” he resumes. “There, we are going to lose this. However, it is something essential in our eyes. We will not be able to report in a direct way what is happening in factories, the consequences of management choices on workers.”
The risk: that the separating gap and management widens even more, while the employees have already been Shocked by “astronomical” remuneration (23 million dollars) that Antonio Filosa could touch in 2028. “Employees do not understand. We talk about it in factories, we are once again in indecency” underlines Bilal Benchaa.
Will the displacement of the Center for Decision Stellantis have an impact on French and European factories? You will understand, at a time when we write these lines, impossible to determine it, Antonio Filosa having not yet revealed its strategy and its executive committee. “We can really get an idea in a few months” concludes Bilal Benchaa. “We remain vigilant. But it is true that we would have preferred a CEO based in Europe. It would have been more reassuring”.