PSA continues to use opportunities offered by the Labor Law . The French car manufacturer has proposed to some 3,000 employees of its plant in Vesoul (Haute-Saone) to increase their working time from 35 hours to 37 hours 45 per week (an increase of 7.8%), in exchange for a wage increase of 2.8%. A project presented Monday to the social and economic committee (a body established by the new law), then Tuesday to local trade unions – and immediately denounced by the CGT. “This challenge of 35 hours by one of the largest industrial groups is a message given to all employees of all companies in the country,” said the union in a leaflet Tuesday.
Strong competition
The management of the plant justifies this project by its desire to improve the competitiveness of the plant. “This project is part of a broader plan to transform the site and improve the organization, to reduce costs,” said a spokesman for the group. “It’s about staying in the race and ensuring the site a long-term development.” Vesoul is a special site for PSA: it is not a production plant, but a platform dedicated to the storage and logistics of spare parts. “This is an activity subject to very strong competition, and we are losing competitiveness,” says a local unionist.
The negotiations will now start, with the goal of signing an agreement between 15 and 30 June. “We will pay attention to the counterparties, and guarantees given about the future of the site,” says another union representative. PSA has engaged for several years a policy of voluntary departures in France in consultation with unions to keep costs under control.