Emmanuel Macron had promised to make unemployment insurance stricter when the labor market is doing well, and more generous when it deteriorates. Finally, the new compensation rules, which the Minister of Labour, Olivier Dussopt, presented to the social partners on Monday, November 21, will never be more protective for job seekers. The government has in fact chosen the hard method, five days after the final adoption by Parliament of the bill which allows it to modify the rules of compensation according to a principle of modulation according to the economic situation, in order to meet the labor shortage issues.
From 1er February 2023, the duration of compensation for new job seekers will be reduced by 25%. Thus, someone who could have claimed twelve months of compensation currently will only be entitled to nine months under the new system. “We now consider that, with the fall in the unemployment rate to 7.3% and the difficulties in recruiting, the labor market is in a favorable context which justifies a downward modulation of the maximum duration of compensation”, said Olivier Dussopt, during a press conference. The Minister of Labor also defended a system “who will remain one of the most generous in Europe”.
While it had ruled out from the outset to touch the amount of compensation, the government finally decided to apply a severe reducing coefficient of 0.75 for the duration of compensation. Today, a day worked results in a compensated day, with a maximum of twenty-four months of compensation for those under 53, thirty months for those aged 53-54 and thirty-six months for those aged 55 or over. From now on, a job seeker will only be compensated for 75% of the period worked, with a floor of six months minimum compensation.
“Break of the social contract”
Olivier Dussopt also announced the creation of an end-of-rights supplement for all job seekers whose compensation comes to an end when the economic situation has deteriorated, in order to extend their rights by 25%. Several exceptions have also been put in place. Are thus excluded from the new system the intermittent workers of the show, the dockers, the sailors, the fishermen, the people made redundant for economic reasons benefiting from a contract of professional security and the overseas territories. The Minister of Labor hopes “100,000 to 150,000 returns to employment” additional in 2023 thanks to the reform.
You have 60.33% of this article left to read. The following is for subscribers only.