PARIS (Reuters) – French carmaker PSA on Saturday said it was working on an alternative to bringing Polish workers to its Hordain factory in northern France to help with the ramp-up of production after a weeks-long shutdown caused by the coronavirus.

The decision to transfer 500 workers from eastern Europe to France, instead of hiring temporary workers locally, was criticised by unions as well as the French government.

France’s economy is expected to shrink 11% this year, with big job losses.

“We understand the emotion that this caused in the context of what the country is going through and are working on an alternative solution,” the spokesman said in a statement sent to Reuters.

The solution would involve creating a team at the Hordain plant comprised mainly of temporary workers that would be a substitute for a significant number of the Polish workers, the spokesman added.