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At the request of the CFDT, France The DIRECCTE ordered Barclays to respect labor law
At the last European Workers Council, Barclays presented a plan to downsize its retail banking throughout continental Europe. In France, Barclays business would be transferred to a “non-core” unit with the hardly hidden intention to close the branch sooner or later. The days of Barclays France are now counted.

For the UNI Finance affiliate CFDT, Barclays France has been demonstrating a clear unwillingness to engage in a constructive dialogue with the unions, since the implementation of the first restructuring plan in February 2013. On the 13th of January 2014, the Court of Appeal of Paris cancelled the restructuring process, which is extremely rare, finding that Barclays had "violated the principle of equality between employees working for the same company."
In spite of this legal warning, Barclays France management seems to continue ignoring its obligations under the French Labour Law by not leading meaningful negotiations with social partners.
On the 20th of May 2014, DIRECCTE (the Regional Directorate for companies and employment which is part of the Ministry of Labour in France) confirmed the analysis of the staff representatives from CFDT,  and asked Barclays France "to provide the elements related to the procedure for information and consultation” of the staff Committee and comply with labor law regarding the statutory periods of negotiation.
On the 17th of June, DIRECCTE warned the company once again that the provisions "could be contrary to the legal and regulatory provisions and might hinder the validation or approval of the plan."

For CFDT, the new restructuring plan, which is already threatening at least 348 jobs on the short term, needs to be implemented with more transparency and social dialogue with the unions. Last but not least, Barclays France needs to develop a long-term strategy to safeguard employment at all levels.
 
For more information, please contact:
Stéphane Torossian, CFDT union representative Barclays Bank Plc,

Secretary of the CEC: +33 6 14 36 82 21
Chantal Marchand, Federal Secretary CFDT Banking and Insurance: +33 7 86 76 01 35