The former CEO of the group Didier Lombard (2005-2010) is now 80 years old. His former number two, Louis-Pierre Wenès, is 73 years old. Sentenced by an unprecedented judgment in 2019, these two former leaders of France Telecom saw their sentences lightened, this Friday by the court of appeal, twelve years after the facts marked by a wave of employee suicides.
Didier Lombart was sentenced to one year in prison with full suspension, against four months in prison at first instance. He was imposed the same fine of 15,000 euros as that pronounced at first instance in 2021. Louis-Pierre Wenès, was also sentenced on appeal to one year in prison with a suspended sentence and 15,000 euros in fine.
During the appeal trial, which was held in Paris from May 11 to July 1, the public prosecutor had requested a slightly higher sentence against them than at first instance: one year in prison, including six months suspended and a fine of 15,000 euros.
Didier Lombard and Louis-Pierre Wenès were sentenced in December 2019 to one year’s imprisonment, including eight months suspended, and a fine of 15,000 euros for their “preeminent role” in the implementation of a reduction policy hardline workforce over the 2007-2008 period at France Telecom, which was privatized in 2004 and became Orange in 2013.
“Prohibited Methods”
Several employees committed suicide during this period, against a backdrop of great social unrest linked to the implementation of two restructuring plans (from 2007 to 2010) providing for the departure of 22,000 employees and the mobility of 10,000 others (out of 120,000 employees) without redundancy. In the first instance, the court had examined in detail the cases of 39 employees, of whom 19 committed suicide, 12 attempted to do so and 8 suffered an episode of depression or a work stoppage.
The two defendants – accused of having used “prohibited methods” resulting in a “degradation of working conditions” – denied any responsibility before the Court of Appeal. They also rejected any automatic link between the implementation of the plans and the suicides, refuting “a general malaise” and rather evoking “specific cases not treated correctly”, according to Wenès.
Their lawyers had asked for release, pointing to the responsibility of the State with the privatization of France Telecom. The ex-HRD Olivier Barberot, sentenced at first instance to one year in prison including eight months suspended and a fine of 15,000 euros, withdrew his appeal on September 24. Four other officials, sentenced to four months in prison suspended and 5,000 euros fine, are also retried for complicity in moral harassment. France Telecom had not appealed against its sentence of 75,000 euros.