Such a broad common front is rare enough to be reported. On Tuesday July 12, eight trade unions and five youth defense organizations issued a press release demanding “a better distribution of wealth for the benefit of employees”. The signatories of the text seek to make their voices heard, twenty-four hours after the start of the examination of the bill “for the protection of purchasing power” by three commissions of the National Assembly (social affairs, economic affairs and finance). The message is addressed both to the leaders of employers, who negotiate in the professional branches, to business leaders and to public employers.
This call for a rebalancing of profit sharing is initialed by the five representative confederations at the interprofessional level: CFDT, CFE-CGC, CFTC, CGT and Force Ouvrière. Added to this are the FSU, Solidaires and the UNSA as well as movements representing students and high school students (UNEF, FAGE, FIDL, MNL, Voix lycéenne). Their approach aims to emphasize that the bill, currently being debated by the deputies, is insufficient “to respond to the emergency” because it translates to “a succession of one-off measures mostly funded by the state”. Priority should be given to “the increase in wages, pensions and pensions, social minima and study grants”in the eyes of the thirteen organizations.
“The minimum wage must remain a starting salary”
They consider that the executive can contribute to a better consideration of this issue “central” by conditioning the public aid granted to private companies: this is ” an imperative “the aim being to “lead more concrete social and environmental policies”. This demand had already been defended by several unions during a meeting on July 7 between Olivier Dussopt, the Minister of Labor, and the social partners.
The authors of the text published on Tuesday also wish to reaffirm that “the minimum wage must remain a starting salary”. In other words, employers are invited to ensure internal promotions so that their employees do not remain assigned to this minimum remuneration for years. On Wednesday morning, INSEE announced that the minimum wage will be raised again, from 1er August, in order to take into account the increase in prices. This increase – the fourth since October 2021 – should be very slightly above 2% and would bring the minimum wage to nearly 1,330 euros per month, for a full-time job.