Accusations of sexual harassment: two leaders of Havas Paris "withdrawn" from their functions

Europe 1 with AFP 3:56 p.m., May 2, 2022

Soon a #MeToo of advertising?

Two executives of the advertising group Havas Paris have been accused of harassment and sexual assault.

Julien Carette and Christophe Coffre, respectively CEO and creative director of the communication agency Havas Paris, “withdrew” from their duties on Monday.

Havas, a subsidiary of Vivendi, also launched an audit after the publication of around twenty anonymous testimonies by the Instagram account Balance Ton Agency, which for nearly a week has denounced the long-standing sexist atmosphere within the agency and implicates these two officials.

Inappropriate gestures and remarks towards employees and interns

At the helm for ten years of the agency of which they are now co-presidents, the two men are accused of having sought to "kiss" or "touch" on multiple occasions collaborators, sometimes trainees, in the premises of 'Havas Paris or during external events.

"JC is a brilliant guy but he has the sexuality of a teenager. (…) Under cover of being drunk, after two drinks, he jumps on anything that moves. Same for the DC (creative director) d 'Havas Event. I remember to warn interns not to approach them during agency evenings,' according to one of these testimonies.

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"Comments on all the clothes, hands on the shoulder and the waist, kisses very close to the mouth, I avoided him and only feared one thing, finding myself in front of him", says an ex-collaborator about by Christophe Chest.

Others remember about him a gesture simulating a sexual act, and inappropriate remarks.

"Everyone knew it"

The facts date back, depending on the case, to two-three years and up to 10 years and have sometimes led to departures associated with non-disclosure agreements, tells AFP Anne Boistard, creator in 2020 of the Balance Ton Agency account for denounce the excesses of communication agencies.

"Everyone knew it and everyone knows it," she continues, referring to "about thirty" victims, even if "since MeToo they have calmed down."

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The two leaders continue to work for the agency, said the leader of Havas to AFP.

But "they do not lead meetings and are in withdrawal for all that is management of the agency", he continued.

“We are talking about twenty people who spoke in an agency which saw nearly 4,000 employees pass through,” he said.

Havas Paris is one of the three largest communications agencies in Paris, with some 600 employees.

The Havas group is headed by Yannick Bolloré, son of Vincent Bolloré who controls the Vivendi group.