Economic dismissal: the limits of the redeployment group

A spotlight on the limits of the redeployment group in the context of an economic dismissal. The "lineage" of an activity that was outsourced and then successively taken over does not, in itself, constitute the redeployment group.

Employees dismissed as part of the liquidation of Mory Global argued that DHL should be included in the redeployment group, in particular because of the common origin of the parcel delivery business, outsourced by DHL in 2010 and successively taken over up to Mory Global, as well as an alleged shared customer base and equipment.

The Court first sets out the applicable framework, arising from Article L. 1233-4 of the French Labor Code in its wording prior to the Law of 6 August 2015 (which did not yet refer to the definition of a group within the meaning of the French Commercial Code): redeployment must be sought wherever the relationships between companies allow the interchange of all or part of the staff, regardless of any capital link.

It then specifies that, in the event of a dispute, it is for the judge to form their conviction as to the scope of the group on the basis of the evidence produced by the parties, the burden of proving the redeployment obligation resting on the employer.

The court of appeal, approved by the French Supreme Court, holds that:

• the mere fact that part of DHL's parcel delivery business was outsourced in 2010 and then absorbed into the chain leading to Mory Global is not enough to establish membership of the same redeployment group;

• the use — which was not even established — of DHL-branded equipment by Mory Global's employees does not characterize such a group either;

• the absence of any capital link and of any partnership between the two companies at the time of the dismissals reinforced this finding.

The Court concludes that there was no reason to include DHL and its subsidiaries within the redeployment scope.

Sources:

• French Supreme Court, 18 March 2026, appeal n° 24-21.727

• Another decision handed down the same day (and very widely commented on), concerning the notion of a group in economic dismissal matters as applied to investment funds: French Supreme Court, 18 March 2026, appeal n° 22-12.201