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The job market

Work opportunities in France

The job market

Like in many European countries, in France the majority of the workforce is now employed in the services sector. Of the remainder, around 27% is employed in industry and 5% in agriculture.

There are around 700,000 EU and 800,000 non-EU immigrants working in France. About 44% of the workforce is made up of women. Unemployment is running between 9 and 11% (with approx. 4% long-term unemployment). Structural unemployment is mainly due to the decline in many manufacturing and industrial sectors, as high labour costs make them uncompetitive.

France has a generous system of social security which is supported by high taxation. In addition, there are mandated holidays and minimum wage constraints. In many enterprises, in particular public and ex-public sector organisations, there is an adversarial employer/employee relationship which can make change difficult, especially when workforce numbers are reduced.

Union membership and working hours

Although France has much lower union membership that in the past, strikes hitting public sector and transport are still a common occurrence. This regime is blamed by many for the lack of job-creation and for producing a rigid labour market.

Several years ago, the 35-hour week was introduced to increase the total number of jobs. This is mandatory in some sectors and types of companies, although it looks like the current administration is relaxing rules and dismantling parts of the legislation. The shorter working week seems to have had little impact on creating new jobs.

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