Air France Workers Get Suspended Jail Terms in Torn-Shirt Case
November 30 2016 - 9:10AM
Dow Jones News
BOBIGNY, France—A French criminal court on Wednesday convicted
three Air France workers of aggravated assault and sentenced them
to suspended jail terms for accosting two company executives and
tearing off their shirts, an incident that caused uproar in the
country a year ago.
The assault on the executives, which took place during a union
protest, was televised and featured prominently in media around the
world. The French government, which owns a minority stake in Air
France, had backed the management, and ministers said the violence
was unacceptable.
The tribunal in Bobigny, a northern suburb of Paris near the
Charles de Gaulle airport, gave Fabrice Lhermitte a four-month
suspended jail sentence and Pascal Maquet and Vincent Martinez
three-months suspended sentences. They were also fined €500 ($532)
each plus symbolic damages to the company.
A suspended sentence means the men won't go to jail unless they
are convicted in other cases in the near future.
Soufiane Hakiki, their lawyer, said they would appeal the
decision.
The sentences though mainly symbolic are harsh by French
standards, as authorities are generally lenient with damage caused
during labor protests. In many cases, workers haven't been bothered
after damaging company facilities.
The judges mainly followed the prosecution's requests.
The French arm of Franco-Dutch group Air France-KLM welcomed the
convictions in a statement: "Air France considers this ruling is
the only one that could answer coherently; it confirms any physical
violence is intolerable."
Ten other Air France workers were sentenced at the same trial to
pay a fine of €500 each for damaging company property.
"The ruling is a scandal," said attorney Lilia Mhissen, who
represented 11 of the 15 defendants. "The only thing that mattered
was to give Air France satisfaction." She said she would recommend
her clients to appeal the judgment.
During the case, defense lawyers insisted the TV footage showed
their clients were protesting but didn't prove unambiguously their
were involved in the violence against the two executives.
Mr. Hakiki said the convictions will make his clients' case more
difficult in the labor court where, in a separate case, they are
opposing their dismissal.
The incident happened on Oct. 5, 2015, when hundreds of Air
France workers gathered in front of the company's headquarters to
protest against a management plan that involved the cutting as many
as 2,900 jobs to make the company leaner and better positioned to
compete against low-cost airlines and Gulf carriers that are eating
into long-haul routes.
Angry workers broke into the conference room where Air France
top executives were discussing the plan with union representatives.
While most of the company's executives—including Chief Executive
Frederic Gagey—left, Xavier Broseta, the company's human resources
chief at the time, and Pierre Plissonnier, the head of long-haul
operations stayed and tried to calm down the mob.
Both were then evacuated by security officials, while angry
workers tore down their suit jackets and shirts. The two men
climbed on a fence to escape.
The incident caused outrage in the country. French Prime
Minister Manuel Valls defended the company's management and
criticized the protesters, while the left-wing CGT labor union
defended the demonstrators, blaming the company's management for
the clash.
Write to Inti Landauro at inti.landauro@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 30, 2016 08:55 ET (13:55 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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