Labor productivity down since the Covid crisis

Labor productivity, i.e. the wealth created per employee, has decreased compared to its level at the end of 2019, before the Covid crisis, a drop partly explained by the increase in the number of less productive apprentices than other employees, according to the Ministry of Labor.

According to this study by the ministry's statistics service (Dares) published Thursday evening, per capita productivity was in the third quarter of 2022 3% lower than its pre-crisis level in the 4th quarter of 2019.

If we compare the trend, the difference is even 6,4% because "between 2010 and 2018 the trend rate of productivity was around 1% per year".

The statisticians calculated that the development of alternation contributed up to a fifth of this difference of 6,4%.

Work-study students are indeed "a priori less productive than the rest of the people in employment because they are younger, less experienced and work a lower volume of hours due to their training time".

In the third quarter, 1,1 million people were on a work-study program (including 87% on an apprenticeship contract), an increase of 400.000 compared to the end of 2018. As a result, the share of work-study in salaried employment reached 4% against 2,7% at the end of 2018.

But the development of learning is not the only explanation.

The study also hypothesizes "a one-off appearance of previously unregistered jobs".

This may be the consequence of "regularizing concealed work" in order to be able to benefit from partial activity or "a substitution of resident workers for posted workers who have returned to their country of origin" due to the closure of borders during the Covid.

In addition, companies have been able to favor "labour retention", especially in sectors where activity is falling due to supply difficulties.

Finally, the authors point out "that a significant number of sick leaves have persisted since the health crisis".