Unions are filing a legal complaint against sports retail chain Decathlon and the company's top three executives. They denounce what they see as continued efforts by the company to sideline social dialogue.
The unions accuse Decathlon of a series of social-law violations. They have argued that the chain ignores the Belgian social dialogue model. Decathlon calls itself a "liberated company" that can fend for itself and applies a policy of direct individual communication, allegedly perceiving the legally required works councils as a block.
"Decathlon has thousands of employees, but a works council rarely lasts more than 15 minutes," said Matthieu Marin, union secretary of the socialist BBTK/Setca. "Meetings are also done via digital sessions on Teams or Zoom."
Erika Lambert, secretary of the Christian union ACV Puls, added that anyone who asks critical questions more than once is suddenly removed from the digital session.
Previous efforts unsuccessful
According to both unions, union representatives face "psychological intimidation" and their salary is docked for the hours spent carrying out their mandate. The trade union organisations also contend that Decathlon dismisses staff who might run in the forthcoming social elections.
The unions also accuse Decathlon of preparing a relocation of its e-commerce activities from Willebroek to Tilburg in the Netherlands, further adding salt to the wound. The Willebroek branch would then only take care of logistical supplies for the shops.
The move could happen as early as the end of January but staff representatives say they are receiving "increasingly alarming signals" about this as Decathlon fails to respond to their questions.
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The unions have long complained that Decathlon disregards social consultation. "Both an intervention of the social inspectorate and attempts at reconciliation remained unsuccessful," said Marin. "And they responded to the strikes with unilateral petitions to the court, penalty payments and sending bailiffs."
BBTK says it sees a trend where companies feel powerful enough to push social consultation aside when implementing their strategies. Instead of dialogue, they respond with lawyers and legal proceedings. Delhaize has repeatedly been accused of similar practices.
