Overview
- Sophie Binet said on Monday that she learned she was placed under formal investigation after she accused Tefal of practising “répression syndicale” when a CGT delegate was disciplined for raising PFAS health and workplace concerns.
- Tefal has confirmed it filed a defamation complaint and told AFP that the formal notification to Binet was dated 12 March, while the company denies any policy of repressing union activity and says it is contesting inaccurate accusations.
- The CGT says the Tefal delegate received an internal warning and will challenge that sanction at the labour tribunal (prud'hommes) on 4 June, a near-term legal step that the union says it will pursue.
- This is Binet’s second formal probe in six months after a December 2025 mise en examen for a separate radio comment, and the union warns the pattern could chill trade-union speech across France.
- Mise en examen is a procedural stage in French criminal investigations that does not determine guilt, and the dispute links workplace discipline, public health worries about PFAS chemicals in cookware, and broader debate over legal protections for union expression.