"The decision is taken today, we are going to launch discussions with all the stakeholders (...) in order to allow it to be effective as we want before the summer", declared the Minister of Transformation and the Civil Service, which had hitherto favored more targeted upgrading measures.
But "there is a new element today: inflation persists, it is strong and lasting", underlines the minister in the interview with the newspaper.
According to an initial estimate by INSEE, the consumer price index jumped 3.6% in February year on year, fueled by soaring energy prices, aggravated by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. .
On Sunday, the Banque de France for its part anticipated an increase of 3.7 to 4.4% in the harmonized consumer price index in 2022.
The thaw of the "point" is a break in the policy of the government, which had refused to activate the lever of general increases since the start of Emmanuel Macron's five-year term.
Less than a month before the first round of the presidential election, the ministry assured AFP that this reversal had been decided "on the basis of economic determinants".
"It's not a political decision, but a shock absorber to protect the purchasing power of civil servants" and contract workers, he further argued.
In addition to the unfreezing of the value of the point, Amélie de Montchalin has undertaken to act on the mileage allowance received by agents using their personal vehicle as part of their duties.
"We are going to increase it, as for private sector employees, by at least 10%," the minister told Le Parisien, and "this measure will be effective in the coming days."
© 2022 AFP