Michelin targets job cuts in France to help shore up competitiveness Print CLERMONT-FERRAND, France — In a bid to improve the competitiveness of its manufacturing, corporate and administrative operations in France, Michelin Group plans to launch a "reinforced simplification and competitiveness plan" that could result in the elimination of up to 2,300 jobs there over three years. The plan also will include an as-yet undisclosed amount of capital spending to modernize its plant- and office-based activities and to improve the quality of work life, with a focus on automation, digitalization, ergonomics and environmental excellence. To expedite the deployment of the competitiveness plan, Michelin said it is offering to initiate negotiations with the unions as soon as possible to devise a three-year framework agreement that will empower each plant and corporate and administrative entity to develop its own strategy.