Apprenticeships: Chambers of Trades fear "the end of a winning model"

The CMAs remind us in an "open letter" seen by AFP that "more than 110.000 apprentices are trained each year" in their training centers (CFA), "90% of whom" are at baccalaureate and below-baccalaureate levels" (levels 3 and 4).

They emphasize that these training programs "have the most significant impact on young people's access to employment and on the development of a local economy."

But they consider their ability "to train the craftsmen of tomorrow" to be seriously threatened, with "a decrease in staff of around 6%" "for the first time since 2013", which is compounded by the decrease in funding.

Despite the success of apprenticeships since 2018, with nearly one million apprentices per year, various budget cuts have been decided in the levels of support (NPEC) by the State in recent years, the first of which took effect last September.

The CMAs estimate the general decrease in resources allocated to the operation of their training programs at 8%, amounting to 30 million euros for 2025.

They fear section closures and the triggering of "a catastrophic spiral" of reduced funding and further closures.

The CMAs are therefore calling for "the immediate implementation of strategic management of apprenticeship funding", accompanied by an upward revision of the NPEC, primarily for baccalaureate and sub-baccalaureate training.

"This is where everything is at stake!", CMA France president Joël Fourny told AFP.

The Movement of Medium-Sized Enterprises (Meti) reacted on Tuesday to the announcement on Saturday by the Ministry of Labour of a reduction in aid for apprentices at levels 5 and above, particularly in larger companies.

For Meti, this will accentuate the "already worrying" decline in recruitment in mid-sized companies. According to them, by 2025, "2 out of 3 mid-sized companies" have already reduced their number of apprentices, "by at least 20%" for a third of them.

Meti estimates that this "cut" will cost the state more than it will bring in (200 million euros expected in 2026 and 700 in 2027) because of the increase in youth unemployment that it could cause.