French labour law is the system of labour law operating in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

History

During the French Revolution, the ''

Le Chapelier Law 1791 The ''Le Chapelier Law'' (french: Loi Le Chapelier) was a piece of legislation passed by the National Assembly during the first phase of the French Revolution (14 June 1791), banning guilds as the early version of trade unions, as well as ' (by ...

'' was passed to prohibit unions or guilds and strikes in particular, with a proclamation of "free enterprise". On 25 May 1864, the '' loi Ollivier'' was passed to reverse the prohibitions on strike action. The prohibitions on forming trade unions were lifted by

Waldeck Rousseau Pierre Marie René Ernest Waldeck-Rousseau (; 2 December 184610 August 1904) was a French Republican politician who served as the Prime Minister of France. Early life Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau was born in Nantes, Brittany. His father, René Wal ...

's laws passed on 21 March 1884. Between 1936 and 1938 the

Popular Front A popular front is "any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties", including liberal and social democratic ones, "united for the defense of democratic forms" against "a presumed Fascist assault". More generally, it is "a coalitio ...

enacted a law mandating 12 days (2 weeks) each year of paid

vacation A vacation (American English) or holiday (British English) is either a leave of absence from a regular job or an instance of leisure travel away from home. People often take a vacation during specific holiday observances or for specific festi ...

for workers, and the

Matignon Accords (1936) The Matignon Agreements (French: ''Accords de Matignon'') were signed on 7 June 1936, between the Confédération générale de la production française (CGPF) employers' organization, the CGT trade union and the French state. They were signed du ...

. This established the right to organise a union, to bargain collectively, a legal

right to strike Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to Labor (economics), work. A strike usually takes place in response to grievance (labour), employee grievance ...

, and was followed by enactments which limited the work week to 40 hours, excluding overtime, and guaranteed paid holidays. The Grenelle agreements negotiated on May 25 and 26th in the middle of the May 1968 crisis, reduced the working week to 44 hours and created trade union sections in each enterprise. The minimum wage was also increased by 25%. In 2000

Lionel Jospin Lionel Robert Jospin (; born 12 July 1937) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 1997 to 2002. Jospin was First Secretary of the Socialist Party from 1995 to 1997 and the party's candidate for President of France in ...

's government then enacted the 35-hour workweek, down from 39 hours. Five years later, conservative prime minister

Dominique de Villepin Dominique Marie François René Galouzeau de Villepin (; born 14 November 1953) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 31 May 2005 to 17 May 2007 under President Jacques Chirac. In his career working at the Ministry ...

enacted the New Employment Contract (CNE). Addressing the demands of employers asking for more flexibility in French labour laws, the CNE sparked criticism from trade unions and opponents claiming it was lending favour to contingent work. In 2006 he then attempted to pass the First Employment Contract (CPE) through a vote by emergency procedure, but that it was met by students and unions' protests. President

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as ...

finally had no choice but to repeal it. The " right to disconnect" law came into force in January 2017, which means that companies with more than 50 workers will be obliged to draw up a charter of good conduct. This charter sets out the hours in which staff are not supposed to send or answer emails. * June Days Uprising (1848) *

Champagne Riots The Champagne Riots of 1910 and 1911 resulted from a series of problems faced by grape growers in the Champagne area of France. These included four years of disastrous crop losses, the infestation of the phylloxera louse (which destroyed of viney ...

(1910-1911) * LIP (company) (1974-1976)

French labour code

The French labour code (''code du travail'') is the national which governs work and labor relations in the country.

Individual rights

* First Employment Contract, a law to remove job security for young workers, defeated by protests in 2006. * Contrat nouvelle embauche

Trade unions

List of trade unions in France A list of trade unions in France: Unions *Five confederations recognized by the state as representative trade union: **'' Confédération Française Démocratique du Travail'' (CFDT) **'' Confédération Française des Travailleurs Chrétiens' ...

Enforcement

In France, the Inspection du travail is the body responsible for checking whether the provisions of the Labour Code or

collective agreements A collective agreement, collective labour agreement (CLA) or collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is a written contract negotiated through collective bargaining for employees by one or more trade unions with the management of a company (or with ...

are correctly applied in companies. The labor inspectors primarily control whether companies apply the Labor Code on all points :

employment contracts An employment contract or contract of employment is a kind of contract used in labour law to attribute rights and responsibilities between parties to a bargain. The contract is between an "employee" and an "employer". It has arisen out of the old ...

, illegal work, working hours, etc. However, the Inspection du travail cannot resolve disputes related to the employment contract, as this is the role of the

Labour Court A labor court (or labour court or industrial tribunal) is a governmental judiciary body which rules on labor or employment-related matters and disputes. In a number of countries, labor cases are often taken to separate national labor high courts. O ...

Pensions

* French special retirement plan, for public sector workers

Unemployment protection

Unemployment benefits in France Unemployment insurance in France was first established in 1958. Benefits and contributions are set by the independent body called UNEDIC which is controlled equally by Trade Unions and Employer associations. Unemployment benefits are paid only to ...

Agence nationale pour l'emploi The ''Agence nationale pour l'emploi'', or ANPE (English: "National Employment Agency" or "National Work Agency") was a French government agency which provided counseling and aid to those who are in search of a job or of training. The ANPE was c ...

(1967-2008) * Pôle emploi (est 2009)

Notes

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