The coronavirus epidemic plunges the SNCF into a catastrophic financial situation. And compliance with health rules on trains after confinement could cause an additional three billion euros to be lost. As with Air France or Renault, the state has no choice but to intervene to save the company.
SNCF had accustomed us to losses. But with confinement, his financial situation is catastrophic and could result in fewer jobs.
Yes. So of course, there is no question of redundancies since 90% of the 146,000 railway workers of the SNCF are still in status. But it is clear that the railway group is oversized compared to the traffic forecast in the coming months.
SNCF hopes to have restored 100% of its lines by the beginning of June, except that it can only sell one seat out of two in its TGV and Intercités trains to comply with health rules. The shortfall for SNCF will soon reach the astronomical sum of three billion euros. Since mid-March, to give you an order of magnitude, the SNCF has an average of 3,000 passengers per day travel on its TGVs instead of 350,000 per day in normal times.
Huge losses, therefore, and less hiring.
Yes, as she cannot dismiss, this is what she will play on. Hiring reduced to the strict minimum, limited investment: management is thinking of cost savings in all directions. This will not prevent the SNCF from turning once more to the State, to taxpayers.
The State has already taken over 25 billion euros of debt on January 1. It will take ten billion more in two years. But a multi-billion dollar assistance plan, like Air France or Renault, is now inevitable. Because without financial support, the SNCF would be in cessation of payments and could quickly no longer pay salaries.