2023-10-09 18:44:43
“No to the closure of Fralib”, “Boycott of Lipton and pyramid sachets”… In the almost deserted courtyard of the factory, the slogans displayed fade under the blazing sun. For almost a year, the 182 employees of Fralib, the factory which produces Lipton tea bags and Elephant infusions, have been fighting to save their jobs. On the Gémenos site, not very far from Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône), the mines are tense, the features drawn.
Last act of this hopeless fight: the return to work on August 16 after three weeks of summer closure. During this truce, 83 employees took turns day and night to “guard” the factory and ensure that it was not relocated during their absence. Concerning the resumption, management had however sent a letter to all employees indicating: “We suggest that you excuse yourself from your activity at the factory until the end of the reflection period [sur la proposition de reclassement] thirty days, i.e. end of August. » While being paid normally.
For the multinational, the factory is not competitive
But the Fralibs preferred to take back the collar. This despite the validation on July 23 by the Marseille high court of the job protection plan presented by the Unilever group (which owns Lipton and Elephant).
If each employee has received a reclassification proposal, “management offers the same position to several people, which means that there will not be a job for everyone, and what’s more, these are less good positions paid and less qualified,” worries Olivier Leberquier, CGT representative. “We no longer have confidence,” growls François, who has worked here for twenty years, “and we are only scared, which is that they will come and move the machines quietly. » So, out of all the employees, “only around thirty stayed at home”, indicates Olivier Leberquier. The others organize themselves in the almost total absence of direction. Only one executive is present on site. “Of course we would prefer to go to the beach, but it’s about our future,” explains Saïd, during his break. “With current stocks, we can continue production for around two weeks,” notes Olivier Leberquier.
At the same time, union meetings continue in the CGT premises. “It’s become our second home,” jokes François. Tomorrow morning, a call to boycott Lipton will be held on the Cours Mirabeau in Aix.
For its part, Unilever, through its spokesperson Sophie Jayet, declares that “the decision (being) validated by the court, the factory will close gradually in the coming weeks”. In any case, she insists, the Gémenos factory “is not profitable and not competitive”.
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