"Do you want the weekly work time limit to be re-established at 48 hours at EY & Associés?" In response to this question, nearly 38% of the 3,000 employees at the French subsidiary of the international professional services firm EY (formerly Ernst & Young) answered yes (representing 97% of the 40% of all employees who participated), during a referendum held between April 14 and 21.
The novel initiative, spearheaded by a coalition of unions, came as a reaction to a company-wide agreement signed in 2021, between EY & Associés management and the CFE-CGC union. The agreement allows managers at EY to occasionally exceed the maximum 48-hour workweek set by the collective agreement for the sector, sometimes even going beyond thresholds set at 50 and 58 hours.
Faced with a persistent number of cases of burnout and long-term medical leave, as well as management's reluctance to reconsider the agreement, it had become necessary to take action, said Marc Verret, of the CGT union. "The result was a very strong turnout. Our campaign sparked curiosity and expectations. Historically, the referendum was designed to circumvent union organizations, but it can be used to mobilize employees, especially in a sector where collective awareness is still in need of construction."
However, without the CFE-CGC's participation, the other unions cannot challenge the 2021 company agreement. Although it did not wish to join in with the initiative, the CFE-CGC has said it is critical of working conditions at EY & Associés, and has requested a revision of the agreement.
'The measures taken are not sufficient'
"It's a very good idea to seek employees' opinions, but the questions in the referendum were not the right ones, as there are also beneficial measures in this text," explained Laurie-Anne Cadel, a CFE-CGC representative, who had signed the agreement at the time. "But we still have significant cases of work overload. The measures taken are not sufficient, more should also be done in terms of prevention." According to her, it would, nevertheless, be difficult to prevent employees from occasionally exceeding a 48-hour workweek, "which is part of the business model of the sector."
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