The 336 workers of Getronics Belgium-Luxembourg (Belux), a multinational specialized in IT solutions which has its head office in Diegem, were informed on Wednesday, during a meeting, of the management’s intentions towards them. And we can say that the pill does not pass. According to the unions, “the anger and the disappointment of the workers are immense, and they will not fail to express it in the coming days. A request for conciliation will be submitted to the joint committee 200 to try to restore a form of social dialogue “.
At the beginning of July, the Belux subsidiary was isolated from the rest of the group, which had just been acquired by one of its minority shareholders, the investment fund GSH Private Capital Limited. The new owner is skeptical about the viability of the Belgian and Luxembourg subsidiary and he wants to take the time to examine the relevance of a takeover.
The financial situation of the Belgium-Luxembourg (Belux) subsidiary has indeed been complicated for several years, with several changes in shareholding. “No major measure has been taken to redress the bar”, says Corinne Martin, CNE union permanent.
So, says the unionist, the management of the Belgian subsidiary asked the unions not to make waves, so as not to discourage the investor and the future of the subsidiary. “Then, on August 3, the management invited the shop stewards to a meeting and explained to them that they had a plan to make the branch attractive to GSH.”
It is this plan that remains in the throats of the staff representatives. This will involve the elimination of a third of jobs (126 people are concerned) but without opening a Renault procedure for collective redundancies. “It will mainly be voluntary departures for which the workers will receive only half of the legal compensation. We are announcing hypothetical transfers of a few workers to other companies. The budget for this social envelope will not exceed 2.5 million d ‘euros. And the wages of the workers who will remain in the company will be planed by 10 to 15% “, details Corinne Martin. “And the management added that if the unions don’t agree with that, it will be bankruptcy”, she adds.
Shocked, union representatives refused to endorse this plan. A new meeting between unions and management was held on Monday. “The common union front offered management a legal and credible alternative: respect for the Renault law to ensure that the intention to liquidate a large part of the staff does not destroy the business in the long term, and the negotiation of a social plan including at least the legal rights of workers in the event of dismissal. A response is still awaited, “the unionists say.
If the conciliation requested by the unions fails, staff actions are to be expected.
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