Car workers angry at production cuts

Fears of an economic slump become reality as Renault workers gather to protest at sharp cut in hours and 1000 voluntary redundancies. With sluggish sales across Europe Renault along with French car rival Peugeot-Citroen have both decided to cut production. Blockading Renault’s Sandouville plant in north western France employees expressed their frustration at the steep drop.

A Sandouville factory worker said:’‘Everyone here is blocking the plant because they want work. Because these are people working only part-time and fed up of being unemployed two weeks a month and losing between three and four hundred euros.’‘

Yesterday, thousand of workers, from Renault’s parent company Nissan, took to the streets of Barcelona to protest against the car-makers plan to lay off more than 1,600 employees. The Japanese car maker has been particularly badly hit in the van and 4×4 market.

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