Car industry crisis: Automobile workers don't believe taxing Chinese EVs is the solution

The rain didn't stop hundreds of French and international automobile industry workers from protesting on Thursday in front of one of the sector's most important events, the Paris Motor Show.

While the French Minister Delegate for Industry Marc Ferracci was spotted strolling between the latest luxury cars, the labour unions denounced the unprecedented carmaker crisis impacting France and the EU.

Multiple banners read "Under the glitz and glamour, the ransacking of our factories." Up on the podium, multiple trade union representatives from countries such as Germany, Belgium, the US and even Turkey, took turns to summarise the bleak situation in the automotive sector.

Multiple key players such as Stellantis (owners of Fiat, Opel, Peugeot, Citroën, Jeep, and other brands), Renault, and Valeo have been cutting jobs in Europe and relocating overseas in search of cheaper labour.

Michelin has paused production at some of their tyre factories, while Stellantis' boss Carlos Tavares said on Sunday he is not ruling out factory closures across the EU. 

Three factories belonging to automaker giant Valeo have been on sale for the past couple of months. Around 1,000 people are at risk of losing their jobs.

"It's unbearable. There's a lot of fear and many people are simply resigning. It's a constant source of anxiety," said Jean-Rodolphe Colliaux, a union representative from the Valeo factory in Suze-la-Sarthe (northwestern France).

The plant produces battery cooling systems for electric vehicles and is facing a site shutdown if no company buys it out.

'Come back and manufacture more in France'

On top of that, cheap Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) have flooded the EU market over recent years and driven down prices as more Chinese carmakers look to set up manufacturing and assembly factories in Europe.

In retaliation, the EU Commission wants to impose hefty tariffs on Chinese EVs. However, all of the workers interviewed by Euronews agreed that this was not the way to go.

"Taxes as a kind of economic war, financial war, is no solution," said Fritz Hofmann, a German labour union rep for Open (Stellantis).

"Before bashing the Chinese, we also need French manufacturers to step up to the plate and lower their profit margins. They need to come back and manufacture more in France," explained Jean-Rodolphe Colliaux.

"The automakers themselves are very hesitant about these tariffs because they also produce outside Europe. At Renault, the Dacia Spring is made in China. So the problem is not China and its workers," said Christian Morel, a trade union representative from Renault.

According to the labour unions, nearly 70,000 jobs have been lost within the automobile industry in France since 2012. These bleak figures are felt all across Europe.

"We see that in Belgium, the Audi Brussels company is going to close with 3,500 people losing their jobs," said Najar Lahouari, President of the Brabant Metalworkers' Union (Belgium).

"But we also realise that in France, there are closures. Jobs are disappearing in Italy. And that's why we're here because what we're going through in Belgium is the same as what others are going through in Europe," he told Euronews.

"The future looks grim today. That's because Europe has not put in enough effort and not enough resources into developing our industry," said Najar Lahouari before taking the stage.

On Friday, a nationwide protest took place this time in Italy, with multiple European labour unions participating.