The Senate approves the bill on the employment of seniors resulting from an agreement between social partners

While France suffers from a lower employment rate for seniors than some of its neighbours - in 2023 it was 58,4% for 55-64 year-olds compared to 78% in Sweden and 74% in Germany - this text aims to formalise in law a national interprofessional agreement (ANI) signed by the three employers' organisations (Medef, CPME, U2P) and four of the five representative employee unions (CFDT, FO, CFE-CGC and CFTC).

These figures represent "an unacceptable human waste and an economic waste that we can no longer afford," pointed out Labor Minister Astrid Panosyan-Bouvet, who defended the text.

It was adopted unanimously in the upper house, despite abstentions from the Green and Communist ranks, and is now being sent to the National Assembly before it can come into force.

The Senate, dominated by a right-wing-centrist alliance that supports the government, has endeavored to transpose the ANI into law as faithfully as possible, without going any further.

The proposals from the left-wing opposition were therefore rejected, as they expressed reservations about a text which, according to them, "misses the structural issues" of senior employment.

One of the main measures is the creation of a senior permanent contract called an experience valorization contract (CVE) intended to facilitate hiring.

This contract would be open to job seekers aged at least 60, or from 57 if a sector agreement provides for it, and would offer employers exemptions on the amount of retirement compensation in exchange.

It will also allow for retirement by the employer as soon as the employee is entitled to a full pension, a provision criticized by the left.

The text also transposes another ANI on social dialogue, by establishing an obligation to negotiate at least once every four years "on the employment and work of experienced employees" in professional sectors.

The government also used this text to allow for the implementation of a minor change in unemployment insurance: for first-time buyers, the minimum period of affiliation will be reduced to five months, compared to the current six. This provision required a legislative measure to see the light of day.

The bill could also be supplemented in the coming days by a section on professional retraining, if unions and employers reach an agreement, which they hope to do by mid-June.