2023-09-22 14:27:47
In Wangenies, workers and employees learned the news early this morning during an extraordinary works council. Fabrice, liquid manager of the Match warehouse, has worked for the company for 18 years. He says to himself “shocked“and worried regarding what will happen from now on.”We started with a Renault plan so we already know that for the depot here, there is little chance that we will have buyers. It will do a lot of damage“.
For Fabrice and his colleagues, it is a “cold shower“unexpected.”The figures were not good so we expected a recovery but not that we would part with part of the staff“.
His colleague Gaëtano, who has been with the company for 23 years, no longer wants to work since the news which stunned him. “The management told us that we must continue, there is perhaps a hope of… Hope keeps us alive but we don’t really believe in it“.
For Nicole, union representative and 33 years in the company, “It’s very hard to think that Match is disappearing. This is our brand. It’s really very very hard“.
Negotiations for the remaining 27 stores
“For several months, trade in Belgium has been under strong pressure” explains Christophe Garcia. The general director of Match Belgium talks regarding the indexation of salaries, the energy crisis, the increase in rents or the prices of raw materials. An explosive cocktail which led to Match “a number of additional difficulties“.
Management therefore had initiated discussions for a resumption, deeming this option the most appropriate. “Considering a sale of our stores to an operator like Colruyt, which has real leadership on the market, is likely to preserve as many of our jobs as possible and bring prospects to our stores“.
The CEO also states that a “a certain number of negotiations” were engaged in parallel to find solutions for the 27 stores remaining on the ground. Without further details.
1695398339
#Takeover #Match #Smatch #Colruyt #stores #workers #threatened
