A French court has ruled in favour of unions and overturned worker representative elections held by the scandal-plagued company Orpea.

French unions, supported by Public Services International (PSI), had argued that the elections were rigged in favour of a “yellow union” called Arc-en-Ciel that benefited from “financial and tactical support” from management.

Unions have been engaged in a long-term struggle against the corrupt practices of Orpea – the second largest private care home provider in France.

One of the unions’ core issues had been the company’s illegal interference in union elections in an attempt to favour Arc-En-Ciel – an illegitimate ‘in-house’ union whose interests appear to align more closely with corporate management than with workers.

PSI General Secretary Rosa Pavanelli congratulated the unions on their win.

“The case of Orpea demonstrates once again that cuddling up to corrupt corporate managers is no way to win change for workers.

“Instead, by boldly exposing Orpea’s crimes, trickery and appalling conditions for patients and frontline workers, our French affiliates have already helped spark a judicial inquiry into institutional abuse and financial crimes, overturned rigged union elections, fueled a nationwide conversation on care, won assurances from politicians on increased funding for public care systems and led the calls for deep policy change, especially as regards for-profit care operators.”