the fear of the announcement of a major social plan

Concern is growing within Bouygues Telecom as a central social and economic committee is planned for Thursday, September 18, at the headquarters of the third largest French mobile phone operator, in Meudon in Hauts-de-Seine. The 10,500 employees, including subsidiaries, fear the imminent announcement of a massive plan for job cuts despite formal denials so far from management.

Rumors have been circulating in the corridors for months, particularly since this summer when Bouygues Telecom management spoke to unions about the need for a transformation plan due to the context considered delicate: a very clear slowdown in the mobile market in France and a relaunch of the price war between operators.

According to unofficial counts from some unions, up to 1,500 jobs are potentially under threat in IT management, engineering, customer relations or business services. Activities that could be relocated to Portugal or Morocco, where Bouygues already opened sites a few years ago.

In any case, the CFDT intends to request the appointment of an independent expert and contests in advance any possible financial justification for this transformation plan, even though management is currently completing the acquisition of La Poste Mobile, the largest French alternative operator, for 960 million euros.