Youth unemployment: the government strengthens the "free jobs" system

Audio 01:20

The Ministry of Labor expected 40,000 jobs to be created by the end of 2020, but the health crisis has reduced the number of hires.

REUTERS / Charles Platiau / Files

Text by: RFI Follow

4 min

In France, we will know this Tuesday at midday the unemployment figures for the 3rd quarter.

They will necessarily be marked by the halt caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

To remedy this, the State is trying to promote the employment of young people, especially those from areas of urban policy.

The “free jobs” system was generalized this year and has just been extended for one year.

Report in a restaurant in Nanterre, in the north of Paris.

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The lunch service has just ended at the Syrian restaurant Jouri where Steve, 20, has become the king of "fatet maqdous": " 

sesame, tomato sauce, grilled eggplant ...

 ", explains the young man.

Spotted by the local mission, Steve was hired on a permanent contract this year thanks to this scheme.

I had no experience at all, suddenly having a CDI like that ... We will say I was lucky.

We just have to seize the chance and then see where it takes us

 , ”comments the young man.

Giving a chance to young people from the neighborhood whose address is often a barrier to hiring and getting a boost from the State for that, for the manager Adev Hoorpah, it was all decided.

 It's an asset to be able to work with people you can count on and who are not constrained by schedules.

In addition there is this device, it is doubly beneficial for us.

When they come, they are not able to meet our needs and we take the time to support them, train them.

The investment is more in time.

It takes longer to make them operational as desired. 

"

The experience is not always conclusive, admits the restaurateur.

But we have to bet on the long term.

While waiting for a new hire, three young people are now on permanent contracts, part-time, Covid obliges. 

The

“free jobs” system

allows employers to benefit from assistance of 5,000 euros per year for 3 years if they hire a young person from these neighborhoods on a permanent basis, whether they are registered with the employment center or with a local mission. 

Tested since April 2018 in around ten zones, the measure was generalized in 2020 to all 1,500 priority districts to amplify modest quantitative results.

Also to listen: Young graduates and apprentices, the first victims of the coronavirus crisis

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