France’s labour laws are set up to protect employees from various forms of harm. For example, the whistleblowing law protects those who come forward with information about their companies from retaliation or reprisals. Other laws related to employee protection in France include data privacy laws, laws protecting temporary agency workers, and laws that protect employees from discrimination and harassment in the workplace.
Understanding the various laws protecting employees is key to hiring workers in France. Knowing what you can and can’t do as an employer in France can help you to both protect your employees and safeguard your business from fines, penalties, and other legal risks. We’ll cover everything you need to know about employee protection in France in this section.
Whistleblowers play an important role in society by calling out wrongdoing that they witness in the workplace. Setting up systems that facilitate whistleblowing and protect whistleblowers from retaliation is key to a well-functioning society. Like many other countries in the world, France’s laws include strict protections for whistleblowers.
France’s latest whistleblowing law came into effect in February 2022, making France the ninth country to transpose the EU Whistleblowing Directive into national law. While there were already fairly strong protections for whistleblowers in France, the new law brought the country in line with the EU standard.
Under the law, employers with 50 or more employees have to implement a whistleblowing system, which must guarantee the confidentiality of the whistleblower, and any third parties concerned. Whistleblowers must be able to make their reports either orally or in writing.
Employers must also appoint an impartial and competent person to follow up on reports made by whistleblowers. They must acknowledge receipt of any report within seven days and inform the whistleblower of actions taken within three months. Lastly, employers must provide employees with clear and accessible information about external reporting procedures.
The new legislation provides a new definition of a whistleblower. Specifically, it states that a whistleblower is ‘a natural person who reports or discloses, without direct financial compensation and in good faith, information related to a crime or misdemeanour, a threat or harm to the general interest, a violation or an attempt to conceal a violation of international or European law or regulation’.
Whistleblowers can be employees, former employees or job candidates. Depending on their status, they must have obtained the information during the course of their contract or during the application process.
France’s whistleblowing law also offers whistleblowers protection from retaliation. Retaliation is any form of negative action taken on the whistleblower, including:
Employees who believe they have been the victim of retaliation for whistleblowing in France can take their case to an employment tribunal.
Many countries have strict rules regulating the processing of personal data, including that of employees. Employers in France should have an understanding of the rules so they understand what they can and can’t do and the precautions to take when handling employee data.
All companies that process personal data in France must abide by the GDPR. This includes any company that engages employees since this necessitates the processing of those employees’ data. The following rules apply to employers in France:
Sensitive data is data that is likely to lead to discrimination if it is revealed. It includes data relating to an employee’s racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious beliefs, trade union membership, or sexual orientation. Except in exceptional cases, the processing of sensitive data is forbidden.
The rules surrounding employee monitoring and surveillance are an important part of data protection in France. Employers in France can use various forms of employee monitoring tools to keep tabs on employees. However, restrictions apply.
First, monitoring must be transparent, which means employees must be notified of any surveillance measures in advance. It must also be fair, proportionate, and in line with employees’ rights to privacy and freedom. There are significant restrictions on monitoring an employee’s email and internet use, even on a company device. Any evidence gathered via illegal monitoring means cannot be used against the employee.
Temporary agency workers are workers hired through temporary work agencies. They may be engaged for short periods, for example to handle a short-term increase in demand or to cover for another employee who is temporarily absent. Strict rules apply to the engagement of temporary agency workers in France, which employers should know about.
In France, temporary agency workers are engaged through an ‘assignment contract’ (contrat de mission) by temporary work agencies. The agency must also sign a supply contract with the company that wants to lease the worker (the end user).
In some circumstances, the contract must state a fixed end-date. There are limits on the duration of such a contract, which vary based on the end user’s justification for hiring an agency worker. They range from nine months to three years.
Temporary agency workers in France have the right to equal treatment with employees of the user company during an assignment. For example, they must receive the same compensation as employees working in equivalent posts, including bonuses and benefits like transportation allowances and meal tickets. If other employees benefit from paid public holidays, agency workers must also be granted this benefit.
Except in certain circumstances, employers of temporary agency workers must pay those workers compensation at the end of the contract. This must be equivalent to at least 10% of the total remuneration paid during the course of the engagement. Employers must also pay departing agency workers for any unused holiday allowance they have accrued.
Employees in France have the right not to be discriminated against, both at work and in other areas of life such as housing and education. Here’s what the law says about discrimination in France.
Discrimination at work is when an employee is treated unfavourably compared to others on the basis of a protected characteristic. In France, it is illegal to discriminate against any person working within a company (e.g. employees, supervisors, trainees, apprentices).
The law prohibits both direct discrimination and indirect discrimination. Direct discrimination is when a person is deliberately treated differently based on a protected characteristic. An example would be refusing to promote an employee because they participated in a strike. Indirect discrimination is when a decision seems neutral but puts some people at a disadvantage because of a protected characteristic.
Discrimination can occur at any stage of the employment journey, including when:
Protected characteristics in France
It is illegal to discriminate against employees on the basis of any of the following characteristics:
In certain limited circumstances, employers may ‘discriminate’ against employees by choosing to hire only a man or a woman. These include:
Employers can also discriminate on the basis of age if there is a good reason. For example, they can set a maximum age for recruitment based on the need for a reasonable period of employment before retirement.
Protection against harassment in France
Both ‘moral’ and sexual harassment are illegal in France. Moral harassment is defined as repeated conduct with the goal of or which leads to a deterioration of the employee’s conditions of work, mental or physical health, rights, dignity, or career prospects. Sexual harassment is harassment with sexual or sexist connotations.
Both types of harassment are punishable by up to two years imprisonment and a fine of EUR 30,000. If sexual harassment is committed by a hierarchical superior, this is increased to EUR 45,000 and three years’ imprisonment.
Employers that receive a report of discrimination or harassment or have reason to suspect it can initiate an in-house inquiry. A special body, the Defender of Rights (Défenseur des Droits) was formed in 2004 to fight against discrimination in France. Employees can also bring discrimination cases before an employment tribunal.
Equal pay for men and women is a requirement under French law. Only relevant and objective elements, such as an employee’s experience or education level, can justify a difference in pay between two employees in the same role.
This applies to base salary, but also to all other compensation elements, including bonuses and benefits. Employers found to have paid employees unfairly can be made to backpay wages, as well as facing legal consequences and severe reputational damage.
The Equal Pay Index (Egapro Index) is a metric that companies use to assess their level of pay equality. Companies with 50 or more employees have to score themselves on this index every year. This score must be shared publicly and registered with the labour inspectorate and with the company’s social and economic committee (CSE).
The Equal Pay Index takes into account the following five indicators, each earning the company a certain number of points:
The result is a number between 0–100, with higher numbers representing a higher level of equality. Companies with between 50 and 250 employees only need to report on the first four metrics.
A new directive from the EU was approved in 2023 and will come into effect across Europe by June 2026. It will introduce various new requirements for employers and rights for employees, related to pay transparency and pay equity. For example, under the new rules, employees will be able to request information about their pay and how it compares to colleagues of the opposite gender. The goal of the directive is to increase pay equity and ultimately close the gender pay gap in Europe.
Understanding what you can and can’t do as an employer is one of the biggest challenges of hiring in France. Get it wrong, and you could face legal action and damage to your reputation.
Our solutions protect both you and your workers, thanks to our team’s in-depth knowledge of local and international labour laws. That means you can stop worrying about compliance issues and focus on getting the job done.
The French Labour Code (Code du travail) is the main law protecting employees in France. It covers areas including discrimination, harassment, working hours, rest periods, pay, health and safety, dismissal and employee representation.
France also has specific laws covering whistleblowing and employee data. The Sapin II Law, as amended by the Law of 21 March 2022, protects whistleblowers against retaliation when they report or disclose wrongdoing under the applicable legal conditions. The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and French data protection law regulate how employers collect, monitor and use employee information.
Collective agreements (conventions collectives) are also important. They can give employees additional rights covering minimum salaries, leave, notice periods, sick pay and other benefits.
Employers may also need a Social and Economic Committee (CSE), based on workforce size, to represent employees within the business.
France’s whistleblower rules require private-sector employers with at least 50 employees, subject to the applicable workforce calculation rules,to provide an internal route for receiving and handling protected reports. The 2022 changes to labour law in France widened protection to people who help a whistleblower.
The employer must consult its elected employee committee where one exists before establishing the procedure and communicate it to staff. It must acknowledge an internal report within seven working days. It then has three months to give feedback on what it plans to do or has done. If no acknowledgement was sent, that period begins when the seven-working-day window ends.
The employer must protect the identities of the reporter and others named in the report, subject to legally permitted disclosures Employees who qualify for protection cannot be dismissed, demoted or otherwise penalised for reporting.
Workers may also report directly to an authority responsible for the issue. An internal system cannot be presented as their only route, so managers need to understand both the process and the protection against retaliation.
French anti-discrimination law protects a broad range of characteristics under Article L1132-1 of the Labour Code, including origin, sex, age, disability, pregnancy, health, religion and sexual orientation. These employees’ protection laws in France apply to candidates as well as employees, from recruitment through pay, promotion, training and dismissal.
French law also protects the following characteristics.
These are legal categories, not a licence for an employer to collect sensitive details about staff.
Employers need to base decisions on the requirements of the role and keep a clear record of those reasons. A seemingly neutral rule can also discriminate if it disadvantages people covered by a protected criterion without proper justification.
The EU’s GDPR, France’s Data Protection Act and French labour law require employers to collect only necessary employee data, explain how they use it and monitor staff only as much as needed. Employers must tell staff about a monitoring system before it is introduced.
For HR and payroll records, employers need a lawful basis to use the information. They must explain what they collect, who can see it and how long they will keep it. Access must be restricted, records kept secure, and employees able to ask to see or correct their data.
Cameras, email checks and computer monitoring need a defined purpose; continuous surveillance is generally excessive. In businesses with at least 50 employees, the employer must -consult the comité social et économique (CSE, employee representative committee) before introducing a tool that monitors work. These rules also apply to global systems used for staff in France. The CNIL, France’s data protection authority, can investigate breaches.
Under employee protection laws in France, temporary agency workers must receive comparable pay and workplace rights to employees doing equivalent work. The agency employs them, while the company using their services manages their daily work.
Pay must at least match what a comparable employee would receive after any trial period, including relevant bonuses. Agency workers can access workplace facilities and benefits such as transport reimbursement and meal vouchers on the applicable terms. They also have rights to paid leave, public holiday pay where comparable employees receive it, and occupational health support.
The agency normally pays an end-of-assignment allowance of at least 10% of gross remuneration and compensation for unused leave of at least 10% of gross remuneration, including the end-of-assignment allowance where applicable. The allowance is not due if the worker immediately takes a permanent role with the company.
The company using the worker must provide safe working conditions and accurate information about the position and pay. Agency status is not a way to give someone less protection while they do the same job alongside permanent employees.
France’s right to disconnect protects employees from being required to monitor routine work messages during their rest time and leave. The rule sits within labour law in France and applies along with daily and weekly rest rights.
Businesses subject to mandatory negotiations on professional equality and quality of life and working conditions must address the right to disconnect as part of those negotiations.. If no agreement is reached, the employer draws up a written policy after consulting its elected employee committee, where applicable.
The policy sets out how employees can exercise the right and how managers and staff will be encouraged to use digital tools sensibly. Employers do not have to ban every out-of-hours email or set the same switch-off time for every worker.
Employers need workable expectations about response times, emergencies and cross-border calls. Managers who routinely demand replies during rest periods undermine those arrangements, even if a written policy looks sound.
The Comité Social et Économique or Social and Economic Committee (CSE) is France’s elected body for employee representation. Employers must organise CSE elections when they have at least 11 employees for 12 consecutive months. This is a central feature of employee protection laws in France.
Employers organise elections, and the body includes the employer and elected employee representatives. In businesses with 11 to 49 staff, representatives bring individual and collective concerns about pay, working conditions and the application of employment rules. They also contribute to workplace health and safety. At 50 employees or more, the committee has wider information and consultation responsibilities on business decisions and working conditions.
The threshold depends on the employing business’s workforce, not simply the size of an overseas parent company. An international employer approaching it needs to allow time for elections and consultation before decisions that require CSE involvement.
Employers must assess workplace risks and take steps to protect employees’ physical and mental health. The employee protection laws in France require prevention, information, training and practical measures that fit the work being done.
Every employer must keep a workplace risk assessment document (document unique d’évaluation des risques professionnels, or DUERP) from the first hire. It records the risks to staff and the steps planned to reduce them.
A business with at least 11 employees must update it at least annually. Every employer must also update it when a major workplace change or new information affects the assessment. Where an elected employee committee exists, the employer must consult it on the document and its updates.
The assessment is a working record, not simply a file to create on day one. Employers need to act on identified risks, including stress and harassment, and adapt prevention when work arrangements or conditions change.
Penalties for breaching employment rules in France depend on the offence and can include compensation, administrative sanctions, fines or criminal prosecution. Under French Labour Law, a single problem may prompt both an employee claim and action by a regulator, depending on what happened.
An employee can seek redress through the employment tribunal, including compensation or a declaration of nullity of a discriminatory dismissal. The labour inspectorate can investigate workplace breaches, while France’s data protection authority can act on unlawful employee data processing.
Some offences carry criminal penalties. For example, a person convicted of discrimination in hiring or dismissal may face up to three years’ imprisonment and a 45,000 EUR fine. Failure to prepare or update the mandatory risk assessment document can also result in a fine, with different amounts for individuals and companies.
Depending on the issue, employees may claim compensation, while regulators can require the employer to correct the problem, impose fines or take further action in more serious cases.
CXC helps businesses minimise employment compliance risks in France by providing local expertise on the French employment rules that international teams may not deal with every day.
One of the biggest areas is France’s collective agreements. CXC helps identify the agreement and employee classification that apply, as these can affect minimum pay, working hours, leave, probation, notice periods and other employment terms.
Our local team can also advise when an employment change requires more than a simple HR update. Changes to salary, contractual hours or other key terms may require the employee’s agreement, while dismissals and other exits must follow French procedures and notice requirements.
With more than 30 years of workforce management experience, CXC can support businesses hiring in France as well as across 100+ countries, giving international HR teams access to local expertise without having to interpret French employment requirements themselves.
Speak to our team to learn more about managing workers compliantly in France with CXC.
With our EoR solution, you can engage workers anywhere in the world, without putting your business at risk. No more worrying about local labour laws, tax legislation or payroll customs — we’ve got you covered.
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