On 12 March 2026, the Paris judicial court found the Rocher group, parent company of the Yves Rocher cosmetics group, liable for failing in its duty of vigilance over violations of workers' rights in Türkiye. It is the first time in France that a company has been financially sanctioned on this basis.
What happened in Türkiye?
Let's go back to the facts. In 2018, Kosan Kozmetik, the Rocher group's Turkish subsidiary, carried out a massive wave of layoffs. Nothing surprising in itself, except that these layoffs all took place shortly after the creation of the Petrol-İş union within the factory. And the people who were laid off? Precisely those who had just joined the union.
Eighty-one former employees then brought proceedings before French courts in March 2022, alongside the Petrol-İş union and the organisations ActionAid France and Sherpa. Their argument: the Rocher group, a parent company based in France, is responsible for failing to exercise vigilance — that is, for failing to identify and prevent this major risk within its Turkish subsidiary.
This is not simply a matter of Turkish labour law. It is a question of a French multinational's responsibility for the acts of its subsidiaries.
What is the French legal action based on?
The French law of 27 March 2017 on the duty of vigilance changes the game. This law, which may seem technical at first glance, establishes that large companies must identify risks relating to human rights, the environment and corruption, not only in their direct operations, but throughout their entire value chain, including subsidiaries.
In concrete terms, the Rocher group was required to have a vigilance plan. Not just a document to cover itself. A real plan: risk identification, preventive measures, alert procedures, and remedy mechanisms for victims. And this plan had to specifically cover the risks of violations of employees' rights within subsidiaries.
Yet here is what the court found: the group's vigilance plan did contain analysis of suppliers and purchases deemed sensitive. But on subsidiaries? Practically nothing. No specific analysis of "labour and trade union freedom" risks in Türkiye. This is serious. It is almost cynical: monitoring suppliers while ignoring one's own subsidiaries.
What does the 12 March ruling say?
The ruling of the Paris judicial court is unambiguous. The Rocher group is liable for failing in its duty of vigilance. And the court orders it to pay. How much? €48,000 in total to six of the dismissed employees, plus €40,000 to the Petrol-İş union, with provisional enforcement.
These are not astronomical sums. But what matters is the precedent. It is the first French ruling to state explicitly: no, it is not enough to draft a vigilance plan on paper. The plan must be substantial, serious, genuinely preventive. And if it is not, you pay.
The court also establishes a major point of law. A multinational cannot simply analyse its risks at the level of suppliers and customers. Its own subsidiaries, even distant ones, even abroad, are part of its responsibility. Do you have a subsidiary in Türkiye that is hostile to trade unions? You need to know it. And you need to anticipate it.
What does this actually change for companies?
This ruling sends a very clear signal to French multinationals. The duty of vigilance is no longer a box-ticking exercise or a communications exercise. It is a substantial legal obligation that exposes companies to liability.
For compliance and CSR teams, this means several things: first, vigilance plans must genuinely analyse subsidiaries, not just suppliers. Second, this analysis must be precise: what are the concrete risks of the sector, the country, the industry? Türkiye in 2018 was a well-known context of trade union tensions. The Rocher group should have known. Third, preventive measures and follow-up must be documented. Not just text, but actions.
This also opens the door to further legal action. If an NGO, a trade union, or employees believe that a company's vigilance plan is insufficient, they can now rely on this French case law to make their case.
Sources:
- Paris judicial court, 34th civil chamber, 12 March 2026 — Press release
- Sherpa, "The Yves Rocher Group found liable for failing in its duty of vigilance in Türkiye" — asso-sherpa.org
- French law no. 2017-399 of 27 March 2017 on the duty of vigilance of parent companies and ordering companies — legifrance.gouv.fr