Witht the possible disappearance of Thomson, Angers could close a chapter of its industrial history

Within a few months, Angers could lost what was, for a long time, a symbol of the time the city was a place for industry. Thomson, located on Birgé boulevard since 1957, which became Technicolor could disappear. The company, which gave jobs to several thousands of people, could enter in a voluntary liquidation in the weeks to come. The Thomson headquarter has decided to relocate the manufacturing of decoders from Angers to Vietnam. After they learnt the news on April 13, the Angers employees were stunned.

Such an outcome should question the candidates to the next presidential elections and probably, because of the incidence of that event with the electoral period, the factory will "benefit" of an important media coverage and of numerous promises from all the political circles. But all of them, a 15 years ago, sang the praises of the working time reduction which defintively triggered the loss of competitivity of Thomson as well as a lot of former industrial Angers (and French) companies  instead of tackling their budget deficit and public debt...

The Angers consumers will probably find at L'Atoll the new decoders manufactured in Vietnam. Angers city will probably convert the place of the factory into a new residential district. The owners of the place will find buyers for the building plot. But what will become of the employees who, for most of them, dedicated their lifetime in Thomson?