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The number of dismissed workers at Barry Callebaut in Wieze and Lokeren has been reduced from 62 to a maximum of 5, reports the liberal trade union ACLVB. The signs are also “hopeful” in Halle, where 178 of the 480 jobs were originally at risk, says the socialist trade union BBTK.
The chocolate maker Barry Callebaut announced at the end of February that they wanted to cut more than 500 jobs in Belgium, namely at its branches in Wieze, Lokeren and Halle. Due to a change in market conditions, mainly high cocoa prices until the end of April, the impact now seems to be less important.
62 employee jobs would be cut in the East Flemish branches, the chocolate factory in Wieze and the warehouse in Lokeren. It is now likely that this will lead to up to five bare layoffs, all in Wieze, ACLVB secretary Kurt Marysse said on Tuesday after the final negotiations for workers in Wieze and Lokeren in the context of a level of information and consulting Act Renault.
The company said in a response on Wednesday that it can fully implement its plans in Wieze. “We are happy to maintain a constructive dialogue with our social partners in Wieze,” says Barry Callebaut. “As part of the current agreement, we can fully implement our plans to reduce inefficient structures and duplication of effort, while limiting the impact on affected employees in a socially acceptable way. Although the number of jobs affected for Wieze remains unchanged, in this particular case we have found ways to keep the layoffs to a minimum. “
Negotiations are still ongoing for white-collar workers and executives, where 250 jobs are at risk, but the impact will be greater, ACLVB says in a press release. “Because it includes local, regional and global actions, the exercise here is much more complex,” Marysse explains. “The results for employees show that communication and collaboration pay off.” On Thursday, May 16, unions and management will meet again.
The negotiations are also progressing “constructively” in Halle, where 159 blue-collar and 16 white-collar positions were initially cut, says BBTK secretary Hans Christiaens. “The level of information and consultation is positive and redundancies could be significantly reduced. However, while there is no full agreement, we have agreed with management not to provide figures.”
The next two job councils are scheduled for May 29 and June 6.
2024-05-08 11:37:25
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