Paris (AFP)

After 14 days which prevented the newspaper from being released on newsstands, the strike at L'Equipe is suspended, the intersyndicale announced on Friday, at the origin of this mobilization started on January 8 against the elimination of about fifty positions.

In the process, the management of the newspaper confirmed to AFP that L'Equipe would be back on newsstands on Saturday, after two weeks of non-publication.

But "the movement continues", warn the unions: they have obtained advances such as "the guarantee of avoiding any forced departure in three of the most exposed categories" (model makers, iconographers and photographers) but the uncertainty remains on the possibility avoid any forced departure within the framework of the social plan decided by management.

Because "the risks of forced departures are still present in other categories", underlined Thursday the trade unions.

But "if the management does everything it can to offer a solution in the event that the number of voluntary departures is insufficient at the end of the application period (...)", the union representatives " will end this strike ".

"Otherwise, the inter-union will relaunch it so that management meets its commitments," said the latter.

At the origin of the longest strike movement in the history of the newspaper: a plan to safeguard employment (PSE) providing for the elimination of around fifty jobs, including 47 of journalists, within SAS L 'Team (the daily, the magazine, Vélo Magazine and the weekly France football, in the process of becoming a monthly) which employs 350 people.

In parallel, 12 job creations are planned to strengthen the Internet offer.

With this plan, the management expects a saving of 5 million euros and intends to avoid 6 million losses in 2021, in a context of decline in paper sales aggravated by the health crisis and the end of sports competitions in the spring.

But side unions and employees, the scale of these workforce reductions worries and foreshadows, according to them, less coverage of Ligue 1, rugby or Olympic disciplines.

Conditions of departure deemed insufficient to promote voluntary departures had also ignited the powder.

On this point, the intersyndicale indicates that it has negotiated better proposals with the management, namely the increase "from 0.5 to 0.9 months' salary per year of seniority beyond 15 years for journalists", the "passage from 12 to 15 months' salary for the retirement ceiling" or "extension of reclassification leave for certain categories".

Finally, certain categories of employees will be merged "to avoid suffered layoffs", add the unions who hope to avoid any dismissal.

© 2021 AFP