The title of the document leaves little room for doubt about its objectives. This Wednesday, June 7, the Minister of Labor, Olivier Dussopt, presented to the Council of Ministers “the bill for full employment”. This set of measures should make it possible to accelerate the decline in the unemployment rate to around 5% by the end of the five-year term. One site in particular is attracting all eyes, the creation of France travail, the future employment service. At the end of the day, notable developments in the care and support of the unemployed.
For several years, France has experienced a very marked improvement in the unemployment rate, which accelerated further after the Covid crisis. The figure thus fell to 7.1% of the active population in France, excluding Mayotte, in the 1st quarter of 2023 against 7.4% a year earlier and more than 10% in 2016. This improvement was achieved to the benefit of easiest job seekers to recruit: short-term, graduates, young people… From now on, future improvements can only take place by bringing back into employment individuals who are more distant or even currently totally unemployable. What requires reviewing their support is the objective of this new entity.
The main changes concern the beneficiaries of the active solidarity income (RSA) and, where applicable, their spouse. With the creation of France travail, the latter will be automatically integrated into the Pôle emploi lists when they apply for registration with the RSA. Currently this is only the case for a minority of them. This change will mainly allow the public establishment to quickly contact the person in order to offer him an appointment to make a diagnosis and to direct him to the most suitable service. If no major obstacle to hiring is identified, then Pôle emploi, or its successor, will keep control, otherwise it may be entrusted to certain social services. Whatever happens, the beneficiary’s situation will be regularly reassessed to check that he is still well followed. In order not to multiply the interlocutors, the various bodies (Pôle emploi, local missions, employment framework, etc.) will have their tools and databases pooled.
In parallel with their registration, RSA recipients will have to sign a renewed employment contract. The latter stipulates that the community will implement the means to help these people return to employment, and in return, the beneficiary is also bound by duties. The 15 to 20 hours per week, which has caused a lot of ink to flow, is not in the law. Instead, this contract will mention the level of intensity of the action plan towards a return to employment.
To ensure the proper fulfillment of these duties, the sanctions will also be reviewed in order to become: “more progressive and more effective”, we explain to Matignon. Currently, only outright delisting and temporary deletion exist. This will create a suspension of aid with the possibility of retroactive payment if the recipient complies with his duties.
The creation of France travail is set for January 1, 2024. However, lines could move when the bill passes through parliament. In addition, the project is not intended to be dogmatic and decided at the top. It must therefore be gradually implemented and may evolve according to feedback from the field. Currently 18 voluntary departments have already been designated to launch the first experiments. Some began in March 2023. Their generalization and deepening should be done gradually, starting with the voluntary territories, so that this reform is 100% effective in 2027.
