Social agenda: Elisabeth Borne promises not to corset the negotiations

2023-07-12 15:47:06

Posted on Jul 12, 2023 at 5:14 p.m.Updated on Jul 12, 2023 at 5:47 p.m.

A useful meeting, even very useful, without being historic, which made it possible to renew the thread of the dialogue. After a little less than two hours of exchanges, the unions came out satisfied this Wednesday with their meeting with Elisabeth Borne, in which the employers’ organizations also participated. Even the CGT, through the voice of its new number one, Sophie Binet, noted a “trembling of autonomy from employers”.

The meeting, intended to record the social agenda for the coming months, or even the five-year term, marked the great return of the social partners together to Matignon after the pension crisis. A new start, new faces: in addition to Sophie Binet, Marylise Léon for the CFDT and Patrick Martin for the Medef inaugurated their first “multilateral” as the leader of their organization.

Détente

It was time to relax, unions and employers emerged assured that the negotiations outside the autonomous agenda – that is to say, following the formalism of the “L1” law which requires going through a guidance document beforehand concerted – will respect their freedom to…negotiate. Clearly, they will not be corseted by the executive and they will not work for nothing.

“I was able to repeat that we would produce broad orientation documents, which would leave all their room for dialogue to the social partners. I was also able to reiterate my commitment to faithfully and fully transcribing into law the agreements that would be reached, ”said the Prime Minister at the end of the multilateral. “There is clearly a change in method”, greeted the number two of the CFDT delegation, Yvan Ricordeau.

The subjects concerned are known: employment of seniors, career paths, wear and tear at work, retraining, and universal time savings account (Cetu), a campaign promise by Emmanuel Macron. Will they be the subject of one or more orientation documents, giving rise to one or more negotiations? The social partners are divided.

The calendar is not debating: start of consultations at the end of August, sending of documents in mid-September, landing next spring, ideally before March, to be able to slip into the parliamentary agenda.

Apart from this, this freedom of negotiation will result in orientation documents which will give pride of place to public policy objectives – such as the employment rate of seniors by such a deadline, for example – without prescribing ways and means to achieve, we decipher in the entourage of the Prime Minister. On condition of not weighing down public finances, of course.

Low-wage traps

The leader of the CFE-CGC, François Hommeril, saw in it the promise of a balanced balance of power between unions and employers. It will thus be up to the social partners to resuscitate or not the famous senior index, taken out of the initial version of the pension reform by the Constitutional Council which judged that it had nothing to do with it. Ditto for the senior CDI introduced by the Senate.

At the end of the meeting, the Prime Minister also proposed to the social partners to establish with the government an inventory of the “low-wage traps”. “It was time for the term to be pronounced by the government”, welcomed Sophie Binet.

Closed door

The executive, on the other hand, has closed the door to any revision of the 2017 work orders, a unanimous request from the unions. That said, any development resulting from the negotiation on the professional paths, will be taken up, assures one in the entourage of Elisabeth Borne.

The Prime Minister also confirmed what everyone suspected: the next negotiation on the rules for unemployment benefits will not call into question the 2019 and 2022 reforms imposed by the executive and unanimously denounced by the unions.

1689177062
#Social #agenda #Elisabeth #Borne #promises #corset #negotiations

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.