On March 17, 2022, it took a few minutes for the company P&O Ferries to dismiss without notice, by simple video message, nearly 800 sailors, most of them British, who operated the connection between Calais (Pas-de-Calais) and Dover , in the south-east of England. In their place were put with immediate effect employees who had been recruited on the other side of the world – mainly in Asia – and agreed to work at half the minimum wage, seven days a week, four months in a row. Even today, P&O Ferries operates with this model for the Channel crossing.
One of the competing companies on the same route, Irish Ferries, uses employees from Central Europe, again below the minimum wage, but on contracts of six weeks of work in a row.
At the time, the political outcry was unanimous, particularly on the British side. However, it took more than two years to succeed in banning this social dumping. Tuesday March 19, the Secretary of State for the Sea, Hervé Berville, must sign the decrees implementing a new law specifically aimed at stopping these practices.
From their publication in Official newspaperin the coming days, companies crossing the Channel will have three months to respect two basic conditions: pay the French minimum wage and not exceed fourteen consecutive days of work, followed by an equivalent rest period. “This must put an end to the vicious circle of the lowest social bidder, which consists of saying that competitiveness requires a reduction in rights, which then puts pressure on other companies”explains Mr. Berville. “We will be able to restore healthy competition”welcomes Yann Leriche, the general director of Getlink, the operator of the Channel tunnel, which is on the same market.
Heavy losses for competitors
In the opinion of all the protagonists in this matter, this speed of execution to adopt a new law is exemplary. However, it illustrates the intrinsic slowness of political and administrative decisions when faced with the reality of businesses. “The economic world moves much faster than the capacity to pass a law”underlines Jean-Marc Roué, president of Brittany Ferries, a French company which campaigns against social dumping.
And in the meantime, the economic damage is real. Brittany Ferries believes that the soon-to-be illegal practices of its competitors have caused it to lose “10 to 12 million euros of ebitda [bénéfice opérationnel] » on the year 2023 alone. “For us, two years is a very long time”, adds Mr. Leriche. His company, Getlink, estimates having lost 6 points of market share in truck freight, going from 40% to 34%.
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