Paris (AFP)
Four unions of Radio France (CGT, CFDT, SNJ and South) are calling for a strike from next Monday to protest against the plan of voluntary departures affecting nearly 300 employees of the public group, according to press releases released Tuesday.
In a joint statement sent to AFP, the unions CFDT, SNJ and South call to stop work from Monday 25 to Friday 29 November, while the CGT, in a separate statement posted on Twitter, calls for an "indefinable renewable strike" from November 25 ".
The Unsa calls for a strike on Monday alone.
The unions believe that the plan of 299 voluntary departures, presented this Tuesday at an extraordinary central CSE by the president, Sibyle Veil, "is dangerous for each employee and for the sustainability of Radio France."
The announcement of this new savings plan in the public group had already triggered a strike very followed in June. Management had initially forecast the number of job cuts, but an independent firm, mandated by the Social Committee of Radio France, had described the targeted economies as "oversized" and estimated that 118 positions could be spared.
In a letter sent last week to employees, Sibyle Veil said that "299 positions will be removed and 76 positions will be created to integrate into Radio France essential profiles to ensure our future."
"All departures will be voluntary (...) I made sure to limit the number of voluntary departures of employees," she continued.
For the unions, whose two press releases repeat the same argument, "this plan is due to the will of the government to reduce its contribution to public broadcasting". In particular, job cuts will lead to an "increase in the workload for those who remain", an "increase in recourse to precarious status" and a "degradation of production" on the antennas.
The unions are calling for the abolition of the plan for voluntary departures and "the maintenance of State allocations for Radio France".
The leading French radio group, Radio France brings together seven stations (France Inter, Franceinfo, France Culture, France Musique, Fip and Mouv ', plus France Bleu and its 44 local stations). It is directed since last year by Sibyle Veil.
The group had 4,780 employees at the end of 2018, for a budget of just under € 700 million, of which around € 600 million came from the license fee.
The savings plan of Sibyle Veil aims to anticipate the decline in the contribution of the State (less 20 million euros over four years) and the increase in staff costs, and plans to invest more in the digital.
It also provides for a reorganization of work schedules, to avoid the use of fixed-term contracts.
© 2019 AFP