First Employment Contract (CPE - Contrat Première Embauche) factsheet

First Employment Contract (CPE - Contrat Première Embauche) factsheet

1/ The situation of young people in France must be improved, particularly with regard to jobs:

 Their employment rate is one of the lowest in Europe: 30%, compared with 41% in Germany and 55% in the United Kingdom. ·

  Their unemployment rate is one of the highest in Europe: 22% compared with 15% in Germany and 12% in the United Kingdom. The rate reaches 40% for those who are least skilled. ·

  They most often enter the job market via a succession of work placements, fixed-term contracts (CDD) or temporary positions, punctuated by periods of “uncompensated” unemployment. Only around the age of 30 does their situation stabilize.

2/ The equal opportunity bill adopted by Parliament in early March offers concrete responses to this situation, which has persisted for several decades.

 Responses through education and jobs

  The development of apprenticeships, with junior apprenticeships starting at the age of 14 and apprenticeship goals established for companies with more than 250 employees (3% by 2009).

  Increasing the value of work placements by establishing an agreement on obligatory ones, limiting the length of non-academic placements, remunerating those lasting more than three months, and exempting companies from social welfare charges as a stimulus to increase payment to those on work placements.

  Exempting employers from social welfare charges when they provide jobs with open-ended contracts (CDI) for young people without baccalaureate diplomas residing in a sensitive urban area (ZUS) or who have been registered with the employment office for more than six months.

  Creation of urban enterprise zones (ZFU) in certain neighbourhoods whose unemployment rates are significantly higher than the national average.

  Combating discrimination

  Establishing a National Agency for Social Cohesion and Equal Opportunity and appointing six equal-opportunity officials to coordinate government efforts.

  Strengthening the powers of the High Authority for the Fight against Discrimination and for Equality (HALDE): in recognized cases of discrimination, this body can propose fines of up to €15,000.

  Legalizing spot tests: such testing will help reveal discrimination in access to jobs, housing and leisure activities.

 Restoring authority within the family and in the community

  The “parental responsibility contract”: implemented by departmental councils, its violation leads to the suspension of State benefits paid to families with dependent children.

  Strengthening the power of mayors to fight anti-social behaviour: they may propose that the offender provide reparation for damages, perform community service, etc.

  Voluntary civilian service: this is aimed at helping individuals develop concrete projects within structures that guarantee quality training, an education in civic values and the eventual transformation of the project into a job or advanced training opportunity.

3/ One of the key components of this law is the First Employment Contract (CPE):

It is an open-ended contract:·

  It is reserved for those under 26, in companies with more than 20 employees.

  At the end of a two-year probation period, the contract is transformed into a standard open-ended contract

The employee enjoys numerous rights:

  Within the company: (s)he enjoys the same rights extended to all employees, particularly with respect to pay, number of hours worked per week, and holidays.

  With respect to training: after completing the first month, the young employee gains the right to receive continuous training.

(S)he enjoys facilitated access to credit and housing.

 For the two years of the probation period, the dismissal process is simplified but the right to work is respected:

  The employee must be given prior notice of dismissal: 15 days after the end of the first month, 30 days following the end of the sixth month.

  Compensation is provided: 8% of the salary paid while the employee was under contract, minus deductions for social welfare programmes and taxes.

  If the employee is dismissed after four months’ employment, unemployment benefit is provided, €490 per month for two months if (s)he is not eligible to collect State unemployment benefits.

4/ Our principal European partners have similar systems or are considering them:

 In Germany, the SPD-CDU coalition has pledged to institute a 24-month trial period for all new contracts, regardless of the employee’s age.

 In Spain, one in three jobs is governed by a contract that is more flexible than the CPE: a series of renewable fixed-term contracts, at the employer’s discretion.

 In the United Kingdom, even for employees hired under open-ended contracts, the employer does not have to provide grounds for dismissal until the end of the first year.