Ducros Express, the former DHL Express French domestic business, has sealed a deal with unionsto scale back about one hundred out of 600 planned full-time job losses this year.
The loss-making company said it had reached “a good compromise” with unions that would enable itto reduce the figure of 557 compulsory redundancies by about 100 positions while still achieving90% of its targeted cost savings.
The restructuring plan will enable the company to reduce its operating loss by €30 million thisyear and target a breakeven in 2012, managing director Eric Lefranc said.
The CFDT union welcomed the agreement as “saving 100 jobs and three depots”, and added that thecompany had abandoned the move to part-time working.
In January, Ducros had announced it would be forced to get rid of about 600 full-time jobs thisyear out of a total workforce of 3,100 in order to reduce operating costs and improve its positionin the highly competitive French market.
This plan would involve some 550 compulsory redundancies and a further 50 staff would move topart-time contracts, the company said at the time. It expected to have to shut down seven or eightof its 50 depots.
The company made a loss of €80 million on revenues of €320 million in 2009. Last year it made a€75 million loss on turnover of €308 million, according to French media.
Ducros Express is the new name of the heavily loss-making domestic parcels business of DHLExpress in France which Deutsche Post disposed of to financial investor Caravelle in mid-2010.Ducros remains the exclusive French domestic distribution partner for DHL Express, handlingdeliveries of international Day Definite shipments to customers in France, and uses DHL’s EuroPlusservice for its international parcels.
