PSA Retail France SAS: a vehicle for economic performance and social cohesion

PARIS, 30-May-2017 — /EuropaWire/ — Last January, following discussions between the employee representatives of SCA (Société Commerciale Automotive) and of SCC (Société Commerciale Citroën), all five trade unions signed a convergence agreement enabling a common status to be created for all the employees of the future single company created from SCA and SCC, on 1 June 2017.

This simplified joint stock corporation is called PSA Retail France SAS. It establishes the change in France from a customary name – PSA Retail – to a single legal entity combining the assets of the companies SCA and SCC under one and the same banner and legal identity, while ensuring a convergence of the employee rules in the two entities it replaces.

A system and convergence arrangements to be effective on 1 June 2017
Signed by all the employee representatives organisations – CFDT, CFE-CGC, CFTC, CGT, FO – and by the representatives of the management bodies of PSA Retail France, the agreement will come into effect on 1 June 2017.
The period between the signing at the beginning of 2017 and the implementation made it possible to inform staff and to configure the payroll and personnel administration systems.

An agreement covering several areas
Accordingly, on 1 June 2017, staff from the former companies will see a new company name at the top of their salary slip. The agreement involves almost 5,000 staff members of PSA Retail France.
This will have no impact on their length of service which is retained in the new company, and the branch collective bargaining agreement governing the social dialogue within the new entity, the “National Collective Bargaining Agreement for Automotive Services”, will remain unchanged.
Several negotiation sessions were needed to achieve this convergence agreement in fields as varied – although this list is not exhaustive – as the working-time savings accounts, long-service days, the right to additional leave, the harmonisation of the value of restaurant vouchers, or the additional personal protection insurance.

The single company: a vehicle for economic performance and social cohesion
Although many multi-brand plants were started up in 2016 and this will continue in 2017, reflecting a developing trend in the automotive dealership sector, the creation of the single company aims at making the most of the strong presence of PSA Retail in France, in order to fulfil the commercial and economic performance ambitions of all the points of sale.
It should also be an instrument to help in achieving recurring profitability for the group’s own network in France, enabling the independence, continuity and development of PSA Retail to be ensured as the leading dealer network in France.
Lastly, the single company will also make it possible to offer the development of more complete and fulfilling careers within PSA Retail France.

Hervé Krux, Director of PSA Retail France and Chairman of SCA and SCC, stated: “I am pleased with this agreement which proves the excellent conduct and maturity of the social dialogue within PSA Retail France. This single company will give PSA Retail consistent national visibility with regard to our commercial and institutional partners in all the regions where PSA Retail is established. It is also a significant lever for the necessary optimisation of our operations, in an environment that is constantly becoming ever more competitive. It is an essential stage for ensuring the independence, continuity and development of PSA Retail as a whole”.

Philippe Lefefevre, HRD of PSA Retail stated for his part that: “In practical terms, this agreement provides a family name for all the employees of PSA Retail France and increases everyone’s sense of belonging to this family”.

SOURCE: GROUPE PSA