US Firm Caught In French Labor Unrest Amid Crisis

MARIA DANILOVA

PARIS (AP) — A U.S. company and its French employees remained locked in a bitter dispute Tuesday over the closure of an electronics plant, despite top-level government mediation, with managers vowing to keep the company closed until workers ease off their death threats.

Three-hour negotiations between executives of Illinois-based Molex Inc., an electronic components maker, and French Industry Minister Christian Estrosi brought no breakthroughs, with the company only promising to continue talks on salaries and the future of the plant.

Molex temporarily shut down its plant in southern France on Aug. 5 after charging that workers angry about the closure had injured an American manager and two security guards. Workers said they had only thrown eggs at the manager, Eric Doesburg, and that he was not injured.

Extreme tactics, including "boss-nappings" — in which workers hold their managers for several hours or days before releasing them, unharmed — have gained in popularity among French workers in recent months, as crisis-hit companies look to shed jobs. Some have threatened everything from blowing up company premises to inflicting environmental disasters to preserve their jobs or receive what they consider fitting compensation.