A positive assessment to put into perspective. Nearly two years after its launch, the youth employment contract (CEJ) has found its audience. According to the second evaluation report of the system submitted by the Youth Policy Orientation Council (COJ) to the Minister of Labor, Solidarity and Health, Catherine Vautrin, Thursday February 8, and to which The world had exclusive access, 540,413 contracts were signed between 1er March 2022 and November 8, 2023. In detail, 192,918 were with France Travail (formerly Pôle emploi) and 347,495 via local missions.
Among the last social reforms of Emmanuel Macron’s first five-year term, the CEJ replaced the youth guarantee. This intensive integration system is aimed at 16-25 year olds (and those under 30 with disabilities) who are neither studying, working, nor training and who are struggling to access sustainable employment. It is based on a double commitment: the young person who signs a youth employment contract undertakes to respect fifteen to twenty hours of weekly activity support offered by their integration advisor, depending on their career path. In return, he receives a monthly allowance of 528 euros.
The evaluation of this system focused on young people is all the more interesting today as its architecture inspired the reform of active solidarity income (RSA) ratified at the end of 2023. From now on, each beneficiary of the RSA will also have to pay at least fifteen hours of activity per week to receive the allowance. Currently being tested in 18 territories, the RSA packaging will be extended to 47 employment areas by the end of February, Catherine Vautrin indicated on Wednesday February 7 on Public Senate. The measure will then be generalized to all departments “by 1er January 2025 »announced Prime Minister Gabriel Attal during his general policy speech to the National Assembly on January 30.
A difficult follow-up
The report of the Youth Policy Orientation Council takes stock of this system for the CEJ. And the “intensive support” originally promised is entirely relative. On average, young people who have signed an engagement contract provide 16.2 hours of support per week. But among these activities, those carried out independently (administrative procedures, health, housing, mobility, prospecting with businesses, information research, etc.) take a predominant role (47.4%). . “It is difficult to consider this type of activity as real support », underlines the president of the COJ integration commission, Antoine Dulin. A little more than 32% of hours are also devoted to professional activity (fixed-term contract, temporary work or immersion in a company).
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