- This Friday, Jean Castex brought together representative trade unions and employers to determine the agenda for discussions on the measures to be taken to respond to the economic crisis, including firstly the recovery plan and the youth plan.
- Other major subjects were also mentioned. Discussions on pension reform will not start this summer. The application of the unemployment insurance reform is postponed to 2021 in full. A welcome reprieve for the unions.
- By his desire to delay and to restore importance to the points of view of the social partners, the tenant of Matignon hopes to clear these sensitive subjects that he does not intend to abandon.
Reset the counters to zero. On the occasion of a new meeting with the social partners, Prime Minister Jean Castex underlined the extent to which he wished to put the forms with his interlocutors. "I think it was extremely important [...] to show the French people that dialogue exists," launched the new tenant from Matignon straight away. Then repeating that he was "happy" with the quality of the dialogue established, he insisted that he will "take the utmost account" of the proposals of union and employer leaders.
If these phrases may seem boilerplate, unions in particular want to believe them. Since the beginning of the quinquennium, they have felt themselves in a weak position. Ordinances reforming the Labor Code to unemployment insurance, including pension reform, they are struggling to really weigh in economic and social issues.
Less satisfaction from the bosses side
Will Jean Castex's arrival in government help restore confidence? Leaving the “social dialogue conference” at the end of the morning after at least three hours of discussion, the trade union organizations hail in unison the “Castex method”, even if it will be necessary to pass from words to deeds. "We have a change of tone," notes the secretary general of Force Ouvrière Yves Veyrier, even if "disagreements exist". "We clearly saw a desire for dialogue", supports CFDT leader Laurent Berger. "It seems that something is changing in the method of government", was satisfied the president of the CFE-CGC François Hommeril, him who, since the beginning of the quinquennium Macron, does not cease to tangle the government in the media.
On the management side, satisfaction seemed less apparent. If he recognizes a "rather positive state of mind", the president of Medef Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux pointed out "a very busy agenda", "perhaps a little too much".
A very busy calendar
And for good reason, in the coming months, many subjects will be dealt with. In addition to the recovery plan which must be finalized by the end of August, the government gives them the green light to discuss, either among themselves or in a tripartite manner (with the government) many subjects: youth employment , occupational health, teleworking, sharing of added value, situation of platform workers, absorption of posted work, creation of the dependency branch, pension and unemployment insurance reform. The willingness to talk about work, beyond employment, is a positive signal sent to unions.
Starting next week, consultations begin with the youth plan, the main measures of which were announced by Emmanuel Macron on July 14. As for the recovery plan, it will be clarified following consultations scheduled within the next two weeks. The follow-up to the citizens' convention will also be shared in July.
Opening on unemployment insurance reform
On the most sensitive reforms, Jean Castex also scored points with the trade unions. That of unemployment insurance, a first part of which came into force in November 2019, has in fact been canceled, as has the second part which had been postponed from April to September.
What to cherish the hope, union side, to see it completely abandoned or largely altered in their favor by January 2021, date on which it is postponed so far. In the entourage of Jean Castex, we are in any case showing signs of openness in this sense: "The Prime Minister asked us with the social partners to meet, to consult with us to see if we can modify these measures, since 'They are not adapted to the context, in particular the SJR [daily reference wage], if we can review all or part of the characteristics. "
Pension reform postponed
On pensions, the calendar is loose but the reform is in no way abandoned. The Prime Minister has in any case stressed his desire to distinguish the cyclical effects of the crisis on the balance of pension plans from the “structural” imbalances that existed before the Covid.
Consultations on the financing of the pension system should start again once the forecasts of the pension guidance council on future deficits are known, that is to say around October. "There is a willingness not to put dust under the carpet," said Medef president Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux. For his part, the secretary general of the CFDT Laurent Berger guesses in any case a desire to procrastinate for the moment. "The priority is not to make a short-term equilibrium measure," he deciphers.
Discussions on the establishment of a universal pension system, which Emmanuel Macron wants to maintain, will also resume in parallel. History of clearing this sensitive subject, themes such as professional wear and tear, the employment of seniors or the transitions between employment and pensions will again be on the table, according to the entourage of the Prime Minister. A program that recalls in many ways that of Edouard Philippe, who had led such discussions in February. Without convincing: the unions came out angry at these exchanges, in particular on the consideration of the arduousness at work.
Society
Jean Castex reviews the social agenda and shifts pension and unemployment insurance reforms
Economy
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- Recovery plan
- Pension reform
- Unemployment
- Jean Castex
- Economy