Atos board recommends voting against chairman removal resolution

PARIS (Reuters) - French IT consultancy Atos said on Wednesday its board had unanimously decided to recommend voting against resolutions calling for the removal of Chairman Bertrand Meunier.

A series of setbacks has led Atos to propose a costly split-up plan. Airbus had expressed interest in investing in the soon-to-be spun-off entity, now called Eviden, but the plane maker later dropped the plan.

Any upheaval in Atos' governance while it implements a transformation plan would be damaging to its corporate interest, the company said in a statement.

"Instability could have a detrimental influence on relations with providers and clients, in the context of splitting activities."

In a June 1 letter, Atos' minority shareholder Sycomore Asset Management stepped up its calls for Meunier to step down, requesting that shareholders vote on the issue at the annual general meeting on June 28.

Sycomore said Meunier had an "important responsibility in the governance crisis" faced by Atos, whose former CEO is EU industry chief Thierry Breton.

Sycomore says it owns just over 1% of Atos' shares, more than the 0.7% threshold needed to propose a resolution to the company's shareholders.

Sycomore has said that other minority shareholders, representing 4% to 5% of Atos' capital, support its call but has declined to name them.

(Reporting by GV De Clercq; Editing by Richard Chang)