Twelve mentions of the company in the summary of the “daily newspaper” of the French Republic. In the Official Journal On September 12, Leroy Merlin underwent “name and shame”. The famous DIY brand is suspected of having discriminated against two homosexual employees in a relationship. Rights Defender Claire Hédon decided to activate this mechanism for the third time since her appointment in order to make the group react, which did not respect her injunctions and contests the accusations.
“It is the most accomplished measure” in the arsenal of the Defender of Rights, comments the administrative authority contacted by 20 minutes, which reminds us that it does not have the power of constraint. Faced with a heavy social issue, can this practice of “name and shame” be effective in pushing large groups to change their behavior?
A sufficient tool in the face of large communication machines?
“We can remember a very interesting precedent,” says Jean-François Amadieu, professor at the Sorbonne and director of the Discrimination Observatory. Large groups including the hotelier Accor were accused by the State (in 2020) of discrimination in hiring and cited. It had no effect on changing the practice. »
To support his point, the specialist draws a parallel with consumption. “When you say: ‘the pizza is not good’, perhaps the consumer will be able to turn away from the product, for cases of discrimination it is less obvious.” Faced with large, well-established and economically powerful companies, this practice of “name and shame” can sometimes seem disproportionate. “Name and shame cannot be the only solution for companies that have strong communication capabilities,” analyzes Dominique Sopo, president of SOS Racisme. If there are no binding public policies with significant penalties, the risk is that this practice will at best create a buzz with no future. »
The executive must be able to do more
For our experts, the lack of effectiveness of the method can also be explained by the origin and culture of the practice. Used since the 19th century in Anglo-Saxon countries, “name and shame” is also coupled with the boycott, a “very long-lived weapon” in the United States. In comparison, the call to boycott Vertbaudet launched by CGT leader Sophie Binet fell flat. “The other practice is to tap into the portfolio, particularly with the class action mechanism,” adds Jean-François Amadieu. In France, there are no financial risks for firms. Once discrimination is found, what do you get? What are the damages? If it’s just cherry stems…”.
Like the Defender of Rights two days ago, the government has also tried its hand in practice, in 2020 with Accor concerning discrimination, but also more recently against agri-food manufacturers in order to force them to lower their margins. With SOS Racisme, Dominique Sopo uses practice, notably proving the racial discrimination carried out by real estate agencies. “We do “name and shame” but the executive cannot be satisfied with that. They have the capacity to implement public policies, to produce standards,” before recalling that in 2021, no criminal convictions have been handed down for racial discrimination.
Without going through the judiciary box, the activist proposes two avenues: “Robust, adapted and compulsory training” and “temporary exclusion from public contracts” for groups caught in the act of discrimination. “It would be a significant sanction for a whole bunch of sectors,” warns Dominique Sopo.