Ebra's nine regional newspapers to strike Friday over job cuts and AI plan

Workers at the nine regional newspapers owned by the Ebra press group, which is part of Crédit mutuel, have called a coordinated strike for Friday. The action responds to a voluntary departure program that may cut up to 400 jobs out of a workforce of about 3,200, a move the unions say is the first of its scale affecting all employees simultaneously. The titles—Le Dauphiné libéré, Le Bien public, Le Journal de Saône-et-Loire, Le Progrès, L'Est républicain, Le Républicain lorrain, Vosges Matin, L'Alsace and Les Dernières nouvelles d'Alsace—cover 23 departments in the Est Bourgogne Rhône-Alpes region.

Management argues that automation, including AI-driven editorial tools, will compensate for the reduced staff, a plan denounced by the SNJ and SNJ-CGT as threatening journalistic integrity. The companies have said they are ready to discuss the proposals with staff representatives, and the consultation period is set to conclude by the end of November.