For several months, unions have been raising concerns about the future of Club Med, a key transnational tourism company which since 2015 has been owned by the Chinese conglomerate FOSUN. Since the COVID-19 crisis, the group has accumulated over 40 billion USD in assets but has recently sold off 11 billion in assets including the Thomas Cook agency, the Portuguese bank BCP and the Chinese steel company Nanjing Iron & Steel.
The IUF and EFFAT-IUF Europe are calling on Club Med to provide transparent information about the group’s financial management to the union as a matter of priority.
- The recent resignation from the Board of Directors of Michel Wolfovski, Deputy Managing Director for finance, on May 26, 2024, as well as rumours of a threat to relocate Club Med’s head office to Shanghai and a probable governance change, are causing concern among the company’s employees
- There are concerns that the Chinese group is seeking to recoup cash by dipping into the treasury of Club Med, which made record profits in 2023 including sales of almost 2 billion EUR, representing a 17% increase over the previous year
- Club Med employees and their representatives on the European Committee for Social Dialogue (CEDS) are determined to obtain information on the decisions the group plans to take
Christian Juyaux, EFFAT-IUF Europe Club Med coordinator stated, “The CEDS agreement is very clear. We must be informed in advance of any decision concerning the structure and organization of the Group, and particularly any changes in shareholding. Only then can we anticipate the consequences for our jobs and our employees.”
