Elisabeth Borne said she was in favor of “sanctions” against companies that have “bad practices” in the employment of seniors, Thursday on France 2 during an interview devoted to pension reform.
With regard to the employment index for seniors that the government wants to put in place, I think we can go further (…) by saying that companies whose index shows that they have no not good practices with regard to seniors, they must implement an action plan which obviously will be negotiated within the company, she said.
And if they don’t, or if there are no effects to correct bad practices, then there could be penalties, she added.
Opponents of government reform believe that companies must first be encouraged to keep their oldest employees, before considering raising the legal retirement age from 62 to 64 years. This postponement is at the heart of the government project.
The government has planned the creation of an index to measure the employment of seniors in companies. An essential first step that allows employers to face up to their responsibilities, underlined Matignon.
The head of government has announced that this system could be strengthened as of next week during the parliamentary debate, it was added.
Qualified as useless by the left and the RN, this index device, included in article 2 of the bill, would be compulsory from 2023 for companies with more than 1,000 employees, and for those with more than 300 employees from 2024.
Employers would be liable to financial penalties in the event of non-publication of this index, but no obligation of result is currently fixed in terms of employment of seniors.
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The index was approved by the deputies on Tuesday evening in the Social Affairs Committee after more than a day of discussions.
But it is the initial text of the government which will be examined in the hemicycle from Monday, the executive having opted for a procedure applicable to budgetary texts.
In committee, the left-wing deputies have tried to obtain more coercive measures against companies, without success. The commission also rejected a series of amendments aimed at lowering the threshold of 300 employees, coming from the left but also from the presidential camp.
The initial copy on this index has been slightly retouched. Against the opinion of the Renaissance rapporteur, the deputies adopted on Tuesday evening an amendment by her colleague Astrid Panosyan aimed at making the employment of seniors a subject of social dialogue in the mandatory annual negotiations.