France Telecom is struggling to deal with a wave of staff suicides which has seen 23 workers take their lives in 18 months, some leaving notes blaming job stress and misery at work. On Friday, a technician in Paris, stabbed himself in front of other staff during a management meeting. He had been told his job was to be cut. The man, in his 50s, was being treated in hospital for a stomach wound.
Also last week, a 32-year-old employee at the operator’s mobile telephone unit, committed suicide when she threw herself out of a fourth-floor window at her office in Paris. Her death came after a meeting to discuss reorganisation of the customer service department where she worked — adding weight to union claims that restructuring is the reason behind the suicides.
France Telecom, whose key brand is Orange, is Europe’s third largest mobile phone operator and biggest provider of broadband internet services. The firm has promised better medical support for workers and will enter negotiations with unions to tackle workplace stress.
Economy minister Christine Lagarde on Sunday called France Telecom to tackle the issue. Labour minister Xavier Darcos will meet CEO Didier Lombard this week to
see what can be done to remedy a problem that unions blame on restructuring and
work pressure.
France Telecom has responded to the row by suspending restructuring, creating 100 additional posts in human resources and announcing the launch of negotiations on workplace stress. The firm has also suspended internal job transfers.
In August, a 53-year-old France Telecom technician and father of three killed himself in Lannion in Brittany. Colleagues and trade unionists blamed his death on difficulties surrounding his rank within the company and “infantile” management procedures. The same month, a 28-year-old worker was found dead. He had left a note that mentioned how he felt “helpless” and “angry” over issues at work.
In July, a 52-year-old employee killed himself leaving behind a note blaming “overwork” and “management by terror”. He wrote: “I am committing suicide because of my work at France Telecom. That’s the only reason.”
