2023-10-16 02:45:00
Un meeting under tension, against a backdrop of high inflation and differences on several issues with the social partners. Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne opens a social conference on low wages this Monday. Six union organizations (CFDT, CGT, FO, CFTC, CFE-CGC, and Unsa) and six employers (Medef, U2P, CPME, Fnsea, Fesac and Udes) must meet at the Economic, Social and Environmental Council (Cese) in Paris , with a plenary session in the morning, workshops in the afternoon and a closing plenary. The Solidaires union will not come, deeming the proposals presented upstream by the government “insufficient”.
Élisabeth Borne received unions and employers’ organizations in turn this week. “The Prime Minister told us that there would be announcements, we will take her at her word,” hopes the head of the first union, the CFDT, Marylise Léon. Before the big rally, unions and youth organizations demonstrated on Friday “against austerity and for an increase in salaries, pensions and gender equality”. But the ranks were much smaller than when they protested against pension reform six months ago.
“Have a moment of unity”
Since this crisis, the social partners agreed, in July, on a “social agenda” of tripartite negotiations (with the government) on the employment of seniors, career paths, or arduousness. “There is a common desire to strengthen social democracy, to have a moment of unity,” assures Élisabeth Borne in an interview with The Tribune. On Monday, the social partners are meeting in a “social conference” format to try to initiate discussions between them, under the aegis of the government. An event validated by the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron during his twelve-hour meeting at the end of August with the leaders of political parties in Saint-Denis.
READ ALSO How inflation was inventedSeveral themes are on the menu: “conventional minimums, classifications and career paths”; “part-time and short contracts”; “exemptions from contributions, activity bonuses and reduction in remuneration”, according to Matignon. Under pressure from several unions, the theme of gender equality was added at the last minute.
“The end of the honeymoon”
“It is not the role of the government to decide on salary increases,” says the head of government to The Tribune. On low salaries, however, she will propose “the establishment of a High Council for Remuneration, which will be responsible for clarifying the situation and proposing responses”. The downside is that the conference is being held against a backdrop of deep disagreement between the social partners and the government over the private supplementary pension schemes (Agirc-Arrco) and unemployment insurance (Unedic). The State wants to drain them to fill the deficit in the general pension system or to supplement France Travail, the new public employment service.
These transfers are a “red line” for CGT boss Sophie Binet, and augur “the end of the honeymoon” with the government, according to Medef. “There was never any question of taking money from them,” assured É Borne, estimating however that savings are being made in supplementary schemes thanks to the pension reform. But “they should not be spent when they ensure the overall balance of the system,” she warns. In any case, the government seems to be ruling out the idea of indexing salaries to inflation, as demanded by FO and the CGT, reported Sophie Binet after her meeting with the Prime Minister. In France, only the minimum wage is indexed to price increases.
“Low-wage trap”
The executive also shows “a lot of caution”, according to the CFTC, on the main demand of the unions to “condition” the tax exemptions granted to companies on the increase in wages. The unions believe that these measures act as a “low-wage trap” since the closer the salaries are to the minimum wage, the greater the exemptions. But Medef is hostile to it. Its new president Patrick Martin even said he was ready to challenge it legally. “Sanctioning a company that is up to date with its salaries, on the grounds that its sector is not, is legally impossible,” he notes.
In addition, as the minimum wage increases more quickly (with inflation) than the rest of wages, certain minimums in professional sectors are caught up, generating, according to the unions, a “flattening” of wages. In other words, even with several years of seniority, the employee remains at the minimum wage. “Some people start their professional lives on minimum wage and are still there for years later, it’s discouraging! » recognizes the head of government, who calls “collectively” to “give them perspectives”. Around 60 professional sectors currently have minimums below the minimum wage, instead of 145 in May, according to the Ministry of Labor.
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