One more restructuring, after those that have followed one another over the past decade … It is in an undoubtedly electric atmosphere that Sanofi leaders will detail to the unions, Monday, June 29, the “Strategic roadmap” which involves the elimination over 1,7 years of 1,700 jobs in Europe – including a thousand in France and several hundred in Germany.
Announced on Friday 26 June, during a European works council, the plan concerns positions “In CDI, for the most part, in the support, commercial and platform functions–research-related forms », said Sanofi France President Olivier Bogillot, who ruled out any plant closures.
This announcement immediately triggered the “Anger” employee organizations, the majority CFDT judging this plan ” unthinkable “, the CGT calling it “Ashamed” and all denouncing him as “Unacceptable”. As for the government, which supports industrial recovery in the territories, it warns that it will « vigilant » : no forced departure or site closure, said the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
Snub inflicted on Emmanuel Macron
This social plan may seem incoherent with the announcement, on June 16, in Marcy-l’Etoile (Rhône), of the installation of a new vaccine manufacturing plant in Neuville-sur-Saône (Rhône). And in the presence of the President of the Republic. This investment of 490 million euros should generate 200 jobs, said Paul Hudson, director general of the French pharmaceutical giant since September 2019.
The loss of a thousand jobs can also appear as a snub inflicted on Emmanuel Macron, who had announced, that day, an envelope of 200 million euros to support pharmaceutical companies – including Sanofi – in their research and their clinical trials of a Covid-19 vaccine.
In fact, this reduction in jobs among a workforce of 25,000 employees in France (100,000 worldwide) is one aspect of the plan to cut costs by 2 billion euros by 2022 announced in December 2019 by Paul Hudson. The British boss then presented a “New strategy” marked by the refocusing of the research and development (R&D) effort on a hundred drugs (compared to 300 currently). “Sanofi has not set enough priorities, we must focus on the areas where we can win”, he said.
You have 51.26% of this article to read. The suite is reserved for subscribers.
–
