The former SAM employees in Viviez, Aveyron, have been in their factory for more than 40 days despite the cessation of activity. 330 people were made redundant. The foundry is closed, but the former employees continue to occupy the factory: they spent Christmas and New Years there in particular to prevent the equipment from being sold by the judicial representative: they hope in this way to obtain greater compensation. The occupation is expected to last throughout January. The opportunity for France Bleu Occitanie to look into the career of David Gistau, CGT delegate who is one of the figures of the movement.
A minor grandfather, a steelworker father
It is one of the ubiquitous silhouettes occupied premises of the SAM (Société Aveyronnaise de Métallurgie). David Gistau, small glasses, hoodie and jacket on his back, goes from colleague to colleague and seems to have a little note for everyone: he offers a coffee here, asks for news of a family there. He also does not hesitate to push his colleagues a little when it comes to responding to journalists, as if not to draw too much light on him and show that it is indeed a collective struggle. David Gistau worked at SAM for 28 years. A company that is a bit like his second home: he also met his wife, Ghislaine Gistau, also elected CGT.
David Gistau has been an activist for 23 years in the union. A commitment linked to his family background: “I am a grandson of Spanish immigrants. My grandfather arrived in France in 1922. He landed in Cransac, a few kilometers from here, where he was a background miner. “
A grandfather made redundant in the 1960s, when the Aveyron surface mines closed. But 25 years later, history repeated itself for the Gistau family: “My father was a steelmaker. He worked at Decazeville, at the SESD, but was also made redundant in 1987. I often say that I am the third generation to suffer the same consequences. The dramatic consequences of industrial policies which have been carried out for several decades. “
A basin affected by several site closures
Today, David Gistau therefore finds himself made redundant in this same territory with the unpleasant feeling that history stutters: “Are we condemned, whatever the generations, to suffer these same consequences? _No government has learned the lessons of industrial policies pursued so far_whether they are right or left. They continue to perpetuate these situations. There are, however, tools and know-how in our territories. But that’s where we are today. Hundreds of families will still be left behind in this territory already damaged by several plant closings. Me, it touches me personally. And it is also a source of involvement and motivation in the fight that I am leading here with the other employees. “
No government has learned the lessons of industrial policies pursued so far
David Gistau is still struggling to project himself into the future. “We have a fight to fight”, he said. He is determined to occupy the factory as long as necessary with his colleagues. However, he sometimes thinks about after SAM. A future that he does not necessarily imagine in the industry, but in which he will keep a union commitment.
When asked to project himself very far, this music and rock fan, who immediately cites the Béruriers Noirs and Gaëtan Roussel among his favorite artists, would see himself opening a solidarity café. And engaged.