Continue the activity, or leave nothing behind : it is the latest cry of distress from the employees of MBF, the automobile foundry located in Saint-Claude in the Jura. After weeks of mobilization, 53 days to be exact, their threat is very real: they could explode the site in the event of closure. They are ready to blow everything up, according to the decision of the Dijon commercial court which will rule on Tuesday, May 25, 2021.
One trade-in offer, one solution, and one desperate act
Employees placed gas cylinders on Friday, in the parking lot and around the foundry machines, which are nevertheless dear to them. “You know, when you’re in despair, you’re ready for anything,” confides Nail Yalcin CGT delegate of the MBF Aluminum Foundry in Saint-Claude.
He was one of four workers, who also went on a hunger strike on Tuesday. Strike interrupted Saturday: their colleagues asking them not to put their lives in danger, for the group.
So that no competitor comes to buy these machines, still able to function – Nail Yalcin, union representative
What they want is to save those 280 jobs. And for that, they ask the justice to accept the only offer of redemption. The takeover offer from Mickaël Azoulay, the only potential buyer of the Var. “This is our only alternative, to continue our activity and turn MBF towards the future,” explique Nail Yalcin.
If not, exhausted workers threaten to blow up the factory, to “that no competitor comes to buy these machines, still able to function.”
A general meeting on Monday, on the eve of the court’s decision
Last week Marie-Guyte Dufay, the president of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region took advantage of a meeting with Emmanuel Macron in Nevers. She pleaded for “a specific emergency plan for this territory.” The employees challenged the adviser to the President of the Republic at the same time. They are also demanding a commitment from car manufacturers, its two almost exclusive customers are PSA and above all Renault.
Employees will meet again this Monday, May 24, 2021, within the company, for a general meeting at 3 p.m. The next day, Tuesday, the Dijon commercial court will rule on the fate of the 280 MBF employees. The judicial liquidation, or not, of the Jura foundry will then be pronounced.
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