Saving morale, one French boss at a time

NANTERRE, France: Entrepreneurship is in fashion in France with President Emmanuel Macron spreading a vision of a nation rejuvenated by the energy of startups, but being the boss can be a crushing burden when things go wrong.

Company heads often feel they need to cultivate an aura of omnipotence when dozens of people depend on them to be in top shape.

But that also often prevents them from sending out an SOS when things are looking down.

“We are tempted to ignore the CEO, associated to an image of invulnerability and who has the mission to take care of the employees,” says the Apesa association on its website.

The group was founded by employees of commercial courts frustrated at being unable to provide the human help needed by increasing number of failing business owners suffering psychological distress in the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis.

Isolation tends to be worst for owners of small businesses who also have the fewest resources at hand, quickly making their situation feel hopeless.

Hundreds of French bosses, seeing no way out, are estimated to commit suicide each year.

But volunteers are stepping in, helping businessmen find solutions before it’s too late.

On a recent afternoon, the owner of small construction firm stepped into an office just a stone throw from the skyscrapers of Paris’s business district.

Awaiting him at the CIP centre which consults bosses facing difficulties were three experts: an accountant, a retired commercial court judge and a lawyer. — AFP