The Assembly approves the continuation of "Zero Long-Term Unemployment Territories"

The bill introduced by Stéphane Viry (Liot Group, Liberties, Independents, Overseas Territories) was adopted by 96 votes (23 abstentions). It will now proceed to the Senate.

Established by a law in 2016, this experiment, which is based on the idea that "no one is unemployable", allows volunteer territories "of 5 to 10.000 inhabitants" to create "employment-focused companies" (EBE), which recruit on permanent contracts people who have been permanently out of work.

It was extended in 2020 and was originally due to end on June 30, 2026, much to the dismay of the many MPs who support the initiative, and the approximately 4.000 people employed in one of the 83 TZCLDs created.

But an amendment adopted during the budget discussion should allow the experiment to be extended until the end of the year, according to Labour Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou.

And Mr. Viry's bill, largely rewritten via four government amendments, should allow for a "permanence" of the system, with a "dedicated chapter in the Labor Code", he told the deputies.

The government's amendments take into account, in particular, for the evolution of the governance of "zero long-term unemployment territories", a report from the Court of Auditors published in June, which highlighted the usefulness of the experiment while emphasizing its high cost to public finances (28.000 euros per full-time equivalent in 2023, more than other integration schemes).

The text stipulates, in particular, that "employment-focused enterprises" will enter into agreements under the auspices of the prefects and the presidents of the departments. The Green and La France Insoumise groups have denounced this prerogative as a "right of veto" for the prefect, which could penalize regions ready to embark on such ventures.