Illustration at the Fonderie de Bretagne, Renault group factory in Caudan in the Morbihan, on May 26, 2020. With three other Renault factories in France, the factory is threatened with closure. – Maxime Le Pihif / SIPA
Renault plans to cut 5,000 jobs in France by 2024, mainly by departures from
retirement not replaced, as part of the two billion euros savings plan that the automaker will present Friday, said Tuesday evening Le Figaro.
Contacted by the AFP on Tuesday evening, Renault declined to comment on this information. According to the latest figures available, the company employs around 48,000 people in France, 27% of its total workforce. The cuts, if confirmed, would therefore represent more than 10% of the group’s French workforce at the Losange.
“Renault has given pledges on staying in France”
While several sites of the manufacturer in France are threatened according to press information, “Renault has given guarantees on the maintenance in France of value-added activities such as the assembly, in Cléon, of a new electric motor intended for the three partners of the Alliance (Renault, Nissan, Mitsubishi), but also the repatriation to Douai of the assembly of vehicles which took place outside of France “, according to the daily.
The manufacturer could also generalize remote work for its design activities, in order to reduce its costs, explains the newspaper.
“To reject the transformation now is to run the risk of the disappearance of Renault tomorrow,” said Minister of Economy and Finance Bruno Le Maire on Tuesday evening, when asked
BFMTV about this information. “Site closings can only be the very last end,” he added, saying the state would be “demanding” on the conditions under which the state-guaranteed loan of $ 5 billion will be granted. euros promised to the builder.
A bad patch, weakened by the health crisis
Renault is set to unveil the outlines of a two billion-euro savings plan announced in February on Friday. The diamond group is going through a rough patch: after having recorded its first net loss in ten years in 2019, it was further weakened by the coronavirus crisis. This information was revealed when the President of the Republic presented a massive aid plan for the automotive sector from the Valeo factory in Etaples (Pas-de-Calais).
Regarding Renault, Emmanuel Macron demanded that “all employees (of the sites) of Maubeuge and Douai can have all the guarantees on their future” within the group and announced negotiations on Monday with management, unions and Locally elected.
