A new special task force at Total Energies did not give anything away on Friday. The French oil and gas giant wants to sell its 619 filling stations in Belgium and Luxembourg. “We will let the workers know that we were standing in front of closed doors,” said Hans Christiansen of the socialist workers’ union BBTK.
Earlier this month, the company announced the sale of 619 filling stations in Belgium and Luxembourg. TotalEnergies will transfer them to a joint venture in which Canadian Couche-Tard will have a majority. Total Energies holds 40 percent.
Christiansen condemned the “cynical” tone of TotalEnergies’ Belgian management at the task force. He also expressed fear that Couche-Tard’s style of administration would import a neoliberal mentality into our country. According to the unionist, Couche-Tard has been anti-union in Canada in the past. The company “will not be a ‘premium’ employee in the social sector”.
The next meeting is scheduled for April 17 after the Easter break. According to BBTK, about 900 people work in filling stations and related shops in our country, and 130 people are in support services.
Germany and the Netherlands
At the same time as the Belgian announcement, the French company announced the complete sale of 1,198 filling stations in Germany and 392 in the Netherlands to Couche-Tard. This is not the first time the French company has sold gas stations. Since 2015, it has sold its service stations in Italy, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Couche-Tard operates in North America, among other things, stores and places restaurant concessions, convenience stores and gas stations. The company already has filling stations and/or stores with filling stations in some European countries.
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