Work has completely stopped at the Solodi 2 site in Buchères (where Lacoste’s online orders are prepared and fulfilled) since Monday February 12. And on the morning of Monday February 19, the employees of the Solodi 1 site in the industrial area of Ecrevolles, near Troyes (home to a long-established Lacoste warehouse), began striking in solidarity with their colleagues, demanding a wage rise and better working conditions, backed by the company’s employee committee (comprising the CFD, UNSA and CGT unions).The employees are asking Solodi to increase workers’ wages by 4.5% (€175 for all workers), to boost pay for mandatory overtime, increase travel allowances to keep up with fuel inflation, and to introduce menstrual leave (with a doctor’s certificate), as well as a system of voluntary overtime for workers older than 55.

“We have been standing at the Ecrevolles site since 5:40 this morning with a dozen people,” said Frédéric Gagnon, a CGT union representative. “We’re exhausted, but it’s also a complex situation for [Lacoste], because no parcel has left [the warehouse] since February 12, so customers haven’t received anything for Valentine’s Day,” he added.

83% of employees want to continue striking

“This weekend, we did an email survey with the employees: 83% of respondents said they are willing to carry on striking, because we are not satisfied with what the site’s management is offering. It would be a question of sharing the equivalent of a 3% generalised increase, tapping the part of the rise going into our managers’ salaries to artificially inflate the lowest salaries,” added Gagnon. “We’ll continue until we win. We want to be heard, listened to, and above all understood,” said Gagnon, who has been working for Solodi since 2017, and has been at the Solodi 2 site as an order picker for the last two years. For the last seven days, “commitment has been unflinching,” said Ophélie Leclerc, local secretary general for the CFDT union, who is out protesting with her colleagues. “There’s strong momentum in terms of solidarity and unity. This is a peaceful industrial action, we do not want to spoil the brand’s image. This morning, with the other union representatives, we met the deputy mayor of Troyes, and this afternoon we have a meeting with the deputy prefect,” added Leclerc, a Solodi employee for 12 years. “Working conditions have really deteriorated in recent years. Our warehouse is highly automated, there are many more accidents at work, more sick leave and absenteeism, our tasks are extremely repetitive. The raise we are asking for is negligible, but we don’t want to accept the management’s offer otherwise we’ll be at odds with our own leadership,” said Leclerc.Contacted by FashionNetwork.com last week, Lacoste, which is owned by Swiss group MF Brands (also the owner of Aigle, Gant and The Kooples) said that it takes “the quality of its employees’ working conditions at all Lacoste sites very seriously,” and is “investing significantly, in Buchères and elsewhere in France, for the safety and comfort of [its] employees.”The premium sportswear brand celebrated its 90th anniversary last year, and in 2022 it recorded an “exceptional” result, generating a revenue in excess of €2.5 billion. Thriving Lacoste is driving the growth of the MF Brands group, and is aiming to reach the €5 billion revenue mark in 2026.