COMMUNICATING A REDUNDANCY PLAN TO MINIMISE REPUTATIONAL DAMAGE
Challenge
In September 2018, a leading company in the textile sector contacted Proa Comunicación to implement a communication project about a job redundancy plan in Spain.
The priorities for the company were:
- To open a constructive negotiation process with the trade unions and workers that would be beneficial for all, capable of guaranteeing the viability and profitability of the company.
- To develop a communication strategy that would not interfere with the negotiations and not harm relations with its stakeholders or the company’s reputation as a leader in the textile sector.
Solution
PROA undertook a low-profile communication strategy (one of the main priorities for the client), bearing in mind that, during the period for which the crisis was managed, the company’s works committee organised various protests and a report containing grounds for the redundancy plan was leaked to a media channel. At the same time, an exhaustive dossier of documentation was prepared containing the official position of the company, the statement and argument. Relevant media channels were also constantly monitored, which allowed us to react swiftly to local media publications with the necessary details to minimise the publication of incorrect information.
Results
It was possible to restrict the impact from protests to the media in the region where the company’s headquarters are located. During the first stage of the process, errors in some of the 70 media impacts were remedied. Three weeks later, various reports were published about the negotiations and worker protests (44 impacts). Finally, the agreement reached between the company and its workers was also reflected in the media (19 impacts). In short, it was possible to reduce information about the process – which lasted for three and a half months – to three information milestones and the profile of our client’s position vis-a-vis its relevant stakeholders (trade unions, employees, customers and specialized press) was raised.