Hundreds of workers at three of Louis Vuitton’s 18 sites in France walked out on Thursday after unions CGT and CFDT called for higher wages and protests against a change in working hours proposed by management.
“Louis Vuitton has proposed an average increase of 150 euros per month along with a reduction in working hours from 35 to 33 hours per week,” the group said. He also campaigned for the “balance between life and work” for his employees. According to company management, 5.3 percent of employees are currently on strike.
The fashion house, which is owned by LVMH, says it has a “remuneration policy” and pays its 5,000 French employees “an average of 18 months’ salary per year”.
In Asnières (Hauts-de-Seine), Sarras (Ardèche) and Issoudun (Indre), workers stopped work during the transition from morning to evening shifts to protest what they saw as the harmful effects of this proposal, Denis said Bertonnier by CGT.
“The proposal to change working hours on an annual basis is not acceptable to us,” explains Mireille Bordet, delegate of the CFDT in Asnières stay without generating overtime.”
“There is no night surcharge at Tonvui” and “Great job, miserable salary” could be read on the signs of around 100 workers in work clothes. Most of the strikers were women. “Management’s plan also aims to reduce overtime pay,” said Thomas Vacheron of the textiles and leather goods union CGT.
According to the staff representatives, the negotiations have been going on since autumn. Management on Tuesday asked unions to sign their proposal later this week, to strong opposition from the CGT and CFDT. The CFDT, represented with more than 50 percent, indicated that it would “give the negotiations a chance”.
The unions have criticized the attempt at “crackdown” and threatened to call a strike “within a week” if their demands are not complied with.
The unions claim that the management wants to use the change to abolish reference working hours and to maintain only one early and late shift. “Management mixes wage increases with changes in working hours,” adds Bordet. “They tell us that if the reform goes through, we’ll get more money, but if it doesn’t go through, we’ll get nothing.”