Press Release 28 January 2015 Alstom General Electric: Employee anxiety fuelled by continued uncertainty Despite a communication from the two groups of companies regarding the progress already made, designed to present a positive picture, the employees have not been provided with any real information in respect of the new industrial organisation of the GE/Alstom entity and its social repercussions. As far as Alstom Transport is concerned, even if the communication was meant to be reassuring, the situation is far from this in reality! This is the conclusion reached by the trade unions and employee representatives of Alstom and GE from France, Germany, the UK, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium and Poland at their meeting in Brussels on 26 January. One month after approval of the plan by the extraordinary shareholders’ meeting, there is still uncertainty regarding both locations and the workforce. Despite setting up groups for the integration of Alstom activities within GE and numerous site visits, nothing has filtered down to the employees, who are becoming more and more concerned about their future. What industrial strategy does the reconfigured group intend to pursue under the management of GE? What will happen to the duplicated industrial activities that GE management currently seems to be minimising? Will GE management be driven by the same profitability demands that have applied for GE up to now, which could have far-reaching consequences for the Alstom part of the company? What guarantees are there with regard to jobs, skills and know-how? What will be the scope of the new group following the European competition authorities’ decision? Anxiety is also prevalent at Alstom Transport. Within the current depressed economic climate, the greed of the shareholders in awarding themselves a very substantial remuneration deprives the group of any real investment possibilities and jeopardises its existence in the long term. There is a lack of orders and the short-term prospects for railway activities within Europe are poor. The majority of the 12.5 billion euros recuperated from the sale of Power will not be made available to meet the needs of Alstom Transport, which means it could find itself with a debt level equal to the one it was faced with before the sale of the company. In the light of this situation, the trade unions and representatives of Alstom and GE employees call on the two groups of companies to provide guarantees regarding both the sites and employment not only within the new GE/Alstom entity but also with a view to enabling Alstom Transport to get through this difficult period. _____________ Press 2 /2015 1/2 International Trade Union House (ITUH) - Boulevard du Roi Albert II 5 (bte 10) - B-1210 Brussels Tel: +32 (0)2/226 00 50 [email protected] www.industriall-europe.eu Press Officer: Linda Rackham - [email protected] - Tel: +32 (0)2 226 00 68 Press Release 28 January 2015 They demand that: • The GE and Alstom information and consultation bodies be duly informed and consulted at both national and European level. • The undertakings made by the managements of GE and Alstom vis-à-vis the Alstom European Works Forum be fully respected and put into practice. This charter of commitments signed by the two managements on 28 October 2014 provides a number of guarantees particularly with regard to the establishment of two European information and consultation bodies, maintaining social dialogue structures, participation by employee representatives in the ongoing integration process via the setting up of a temporary employee representation body and partial employment guarantees. Finally, they called on the European public authorities to include the future of the two groups in a broader reflection on European industrial strategy for two sectors that are vitally important for Europe, i.e. the construction and maintenance of electric power plants and rail transport. __________________________ For further information please contact: Senior Policy Adviser: Isabelle Barthès [email protected] – Tel.: 0032 (0)2 226 00862 Press Officer: Linda Rackham [email protected] - Tel.: 0032 (0)2 226 0068 International Trade Union House (ITUH) - Boulevard du Roi Albert II 5 (bte 10) - B-1210 Brussels Tel: +32 (0)2/226 00 50 [email protected] www.industriall-europe.eu Press Officer: Linda Rackham - [email protected] - Tel: +32 (0)2 226 00 68
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