Usuario:Pahpaha/Economía de Francia (continuación)

Empleo

Temps de travail

la France est aujourd’hui l’un des pays de l’OCDE où l’on travaille le moins. Si ce constat n’est pas totalement nouveau, la politique de réduction collective du temps de travail récemment mise en oeuvre est encore venue accentuer ce trait. Au sein de la zone OCDE, cette politique ne trouve pas d’équivalent. Sa singularité réside principalement dans le fait qu’elle a été conduite de manière autoritaire, par voie législative, qu’elle imposait le maintien du pouvoir d’achat d’un certain nombre de salariés tout en prévoyant des aides financières pour les entreprises, et enfin, qu’elle a été envisagée comme une politique d’emploi offensive (témoin par exemple, le fait qu’elle ait été mise en oeuvre dans une période faste de la conjoncture internationale). Au total, les effets de court terme de cette mesure ont très probablement été positifs sur l’emploi. Dans une perspective de plus long terme, on peut craindre que cette politique de réduction collective du temps de travail pèse lourdement sur les finances publiques et qu’elle ait entamé le potentiel de croissance économique.​

Unemployment

Despite improved employment rates, unemployment remains high. GDP per capita has not grown strongly enough to narrow the income gap vis-à-vis the United States.

Priorities supported by indicators

• Reduce implicit tax on continued work at older ages: A low official retirement age, high implicit tax rates on working longer, state-funded earlyretirement and extended unemployment-insurance (UI) programmes contribute to very low employment rates of older workers.
  • Actions taken: Retirement ages are being raised in line with life expectancy. Private-sector rules have been changed to increase the net income of those working beyond the official retirement age. Earlyretirement programmes have been scaled back. Using the UI system as a form of early-retirement has been made more difficult.
  • Recommendations: Phase out special early-retirement schemes. Further tighten access to extended unemployment benefits. Increase the pension increments for longer contribution periods to actuarially fair levels.
• Ease employment protection legislation: Rules governing large-scale layoffs, high statutory severance payments, restrictions on the use of fixed-term contracts and limitations on working time raise both labour and layoff costs, thereby reducing hiring.
  • Actions taken: The temporary suspension of legislation significantly tightening employment protection was extended for a further year.
  • Recommendations: Rules designed to restrict the use of fixed-term contracts should be relaxed and regulations concerning “social plans” (mass layoffs) amended. Limit the role of the judiciary system to intractable cases.
• Reduce minimum cost of labour Compared with other OECD countries, the minimum labour cost is high relative to the average cost, lowering demand for labour, especially for certain groups such as young and low-skilled workers.
  • Actions taken: Large cuts in social contributions for low-paid workers during recent years succeeded in markedly reducing the relative minimum labour cost, but this trend has slowed as the minimum wage increased (and is set to increase in 2005) with the harmonisation of the various legal minima that were generated by the legislation on the 35 hours week.
  • Recommendations: Limit future increases in the minimum wage so as to allow the relative minimum labour cost to decline further. Expand on-the-job training opportunities at less than the minimum wage.

Other key priorities

• Reduce barriers to entry in network industries that contribute to higher prices and limit choice. Introduce competition in rail transport and secure non-discriminatory third-party access in telecommunications and air transport.
• Ease the regulatory environment by simplifying the compulsory social security system, replacing the administrative approval of retail outlet locations with zoning requirements and scaling back pricing rules in place between producers and retailers.​

How does France compare?

French labour market performance has improved but the gap vis-à-vis best-performing countries remains significant. The OECD Employment Outlook shows that the French standardised unemployment rate fell by one percentage point in 2007, reaching 8.3% at the end of the year. This remains, however, 1.3 percentage point above the EU-15 average and 2.7 points above the OECD average. However, only 64.4% of people of working age have a job in France, compared with over 70% in the best-performing OECD countries like Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United States and the United Kingdom.

Improving the labour market situation of younger and older workers is a key. Prime-age workers fare relatively well in France, with 82% of people aged 25-54 in employment against 77% in the OECD area as a whole. By contrast, only 38% of people aged 55 to 64 are working, 15.5 percentage points less than the OECD average. And at 20%, the unemployment rate among youth aged 15 to 24 years is 1.5 times higher than in the OECD area. In France, youth face strong barriers to employment at all levels of educational attainment.

Racial minorities fare worst in the labour market than the rest of the population. For example, the Employment Outlook notes that, in big cities where specific studies have been conducted, it takes people with African-sounding names typically twice as long to get a job interview than individuals with strictly identical resumes but having a French-sounding name.

The legislative framework for equality is quite comprehensive, but population appears to be ill-informed. Only half of the population in France claim to know that discrimination on the basis of ethnic origin, when hiring new employees, is unlawful. And only 29% of French citizens know their rights, should they be a victim of discrimination. This lack of public awareness constitutes a strong barrier to the effective enforcement of legal rules. Indeed, laws are not self-enforcing; individuals are the actors mobilizing the law and have to take legal actions. Thus, at the very least, workers should know that they have a legal right to equal treatment. Information and education campaigns, currently conducted by the HALDE (High Authority Combating Discrimination and Promoting Equality), are particularly welcomed.

Although it is too early to evaluate its impact, the HALDE has strong powers, and can potentially play an important role in fighting discrimination. Laws can have an impact only if they are effectively enforced, and in this respect, equality bodies have a crucial role to play, the OECD report notes. In particular, such bodies should: have investigative powers so that they can help a plaintiff to gather evidence of discrimination, be empowered to investigate companies even in the absence of an individual claim and to apply sanctions where there is evidence of discrimination; and, also, help the parties to solve a discrimination dispute through mediation as an alternative to judicial actions. Taking its functions in 2005, the HALDE has all these powers.

Mental health has slightly worsened in France in the last decade. Prevalence of self-reported mental illness has increased by almost 2% since 1992. At the same time, the share of workers reporting work-related mental health problems has also risen, although it is close to the EU average. Work-related mental health problems are more often associated with more difficult working conditions such as working long hours and workplace discrimination. Certain working conditions which have an impact on mental health have worsened in France (work intensity and shift work) but others have improved (discrimination at the workplace). That said, mental illness remains more prevalent among unemployed or other inactive persons than among those who have a job.​

Improving labour market performance in France

With high unemployment, low participation of specific groups such as the low-skilled and those nearing retirement age, and relatively low average hours worked, France is far from using its full labour potential. Improving the labour market situation would not only increase living standards and growth potential but also reduce social exclusion and ease pressures on public spending. This paper analyses various characteristics of the French labour market that may explain the low utilisation of labour potential. It puts forward the need for a comprehensive reform of the labour market aiming at: i) shifting the burden of social protection in the labour market away from employers towards the state by reducing and streamlining employment protection legislation; ii) removing incentives that lead to early withdrawal from the labour market; iii) allowing employers and employees more freedom to negotiate working hours; and iv) improving efficiency in job placement services.

http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/41/28/32505242.pdf

Impact of minimum wage

• http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/48/9/34280916.pdf
• http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/55/16/33747254.pdf

Ageing

http://www.oecdobserver.org/news/fullstory.php/aid/1672/

Immigration and work

Helping immigrants and their children find work should be a priority, says OECD Send Send Print print

Immigrants in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Portugal are more likely to be unemployed or doing a job for which they are overqualified than people born in that country. Their children, even if born in the country and having left school with qualifications, also find it hard to find work, according to a new OECD report.

Jobs for Immigrants: Labour Market Integration in Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Portugal says that, with more and more children of immigrants leaving school and trying to find a job, helping them should be a priority.

Looking ahead, the report warns that immigrants, especially new arrivals, are often among the hardest hit in economic downturns, as many have low-skilled jobs or work in cyclical sectors, such as construction. Given the likely rise in unemployment in many OECD countries, the report urges governments to continue investing in policies to boost the job prospects of immigrants to help their long-term integration.

Traineeships and mentoring programmes for immigrant jobseekers in Belgium and France have helped many find full-time work, the report notes. Belgium has also put in place proactive anti-discrimination and diversity policies, including increased funding for schools with more immigrants and cutting social security charges for firms that hire immigrants. These initiatives show promise, the report notes, but their long-term impact needs closer evaluation.

Better use should be made of the skills of highly-qualified immigrants. Countries should improve their assessment and recognition of qualifications and work-experience gained in non-OECD countries, and make the process more transparent.​

Inegalités

http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/58/9/35867751.pdf

Combating poverty and social exclusion

Reducing poverty and social exclusion is an important objective for all French governments. Even though conventionally measured poverty is in fact lower than in most other countries, it is still higher than can be easily accepted. The current policy approach involves a large number of measures tailored to different circumstances. Some policies have unwanted side effects on labour market performance, and their cost-effectiveness could be improved to obtain better outcomes with the same resources. Concentrations of poverty and social exclusion in certain geographic areas and among certain groups of the population provide one of the most difficult challenges, for which contributions from education, labour market, housing, urban planning and anti-discrimination policies, as well as from the social services, are necessary.​

Education

http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/31/47/41277838.pdf

Enhancing incentives to improve performance in the education system in France

The French education system has a mixed record. A generally very successful pre-school and primary school level contrasts with underfunded public universities with high dropout rates which exist alongside very successful higher education institutions for elites. Initial education, especially secondary education and the universities, along with labour market policies themselves, do not always succeed in improving labour market entry for a significant proportion of young people. Parts of the management of education have been decentralised, yet educational institutions themselves generally have a very restricted degree of autonomy. The system of performance measurement and incentives, at all levels of education, needs to be reviewed.​

Salud

http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/58/13/16073264.pdf The health system in France is regarded as delivering highquality services, with freedom of choice and generally no waiting lists for treatments. Access to medical services is equal among the population and, unlike in some other countries, people can get the treatments they need irrespective of their social status or work situation. It is therefore not surprising that the French population is relatively satisfied with the health system. As this paper points out, however, this high quality comes at a price: health expenditure in relation to GDP is among the highest in the OECD and risks increasing further in the future in the absence of adequate measures. Past reform efforts, which have shifted the cost to the patient through higher out-of-pocket payments, have proved ineffective and raised equity questions. A new approach is therefore necessary. This paper argues that the renewed reform effort should provide microeconomic incentives to alter both the consumption and prescription behaviour. A package of measures tailored to the particular institutional and social characteristics of the French system is proposed, which would reign in costs while preserving the main strengths of the system-quality of care, freedom of choice, and equity of access.​

Finanzas publicas

Since the early 1990s, when France's general government deficit reached a disturbing 6 per cent of GDP, the country's public finances have progressed substantially, even though significantly further improvement is required. This paper examines the tools available to policy-makers to meet this challenge. The clearest message is that, given the relatively small size of the State Budget in total spending, the challenge cannot be met by the State sector alone. Social security, as the principal source of spending pressure, must play a role, but so too must sub-national government -- especially if current plans to transfer additional responsibilities to the local level go through. If policy-makers are to succeed in directing public expenditure so as to create this room, they will have to clarify governance structures so that those who administer programmes face appropriate incentives to control costs and maximise programme efficiency.​

Meeting the challenges of decentralisation in France

Despite France’s previously well-deserved reputation as a highly centralised state, a significant number of responsibilities have been devolved to regional and local government over the past two decades. The process has not been easy. The extremely large number of very small municipalities makes economies of scale in the implementation of policies hard to realise, and measures to overcome this have been at best only partially successful. Competence is often shared between levels of government, obscuring accountability, and the central government has often retained an arguably unnecessary degree of prerogatives. Reorganising the system to avoid overlapping responsibilities and improving transparency and accountability in local government finance provide some difficult challenges.​

Necessary reforms

http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/49/13/39669342.pdf http://www.oecd.org/document/62/0,3343,fr_33873108_33873376_39669694_1_1_1_1,00.html Reforms undertaken in France over the last two decades have helped the country’s economic performance, but further improvements in regulations would benefit its businesses and citizens, according to a new OECD report.

Regulatory Reform in France: Charting a Clearer Way Forward notes that France has reduced the role of the state in its economy and has largely opened its markets to competition, although further progress is still possible in some network industries and utilities. France is one of a number of OECD countries to have requested a broad review by the OECD of its regulatory practices and reforms. The report presents an overall picture, within a macroeconomic context, of regulatory achievements and challenges including the quality of regulation, competition policy and market openness. It also contains detailed reviews of sectors such as civil aviation and telecommunications.

In recent years, the report notes, successive governments have taken steps to make dealing with the public administration simpler. France has become a leader among OECD countries in making administrative forms and regulatory codes available on line. Local authorities have been given increased responsibilities through decentralisation.

However, unemployment remains high and France’s population is ageing rapidly. Public spending is high compared to other OECD countries and might not be sustainable in the long run. Decentralisation has also created overlapping responsibilities between the local authorities and the state. The role of the state in the economy needs to be more clearly defined as part of a strategy to improve competition and avoid conflicts of interest in markets. The creation of an Agency for State Holdings in 2003 marked a step in clarifying the respective roles of the state as a regulator and owner of productive resources.

Among specific actions, the OECD recommends that France should:

• Consider setting up a unit responsible for assessing the cost, quality and impact of new regulations
• Engage in more transparent and systematic consultation to increase public accountability

Improve efficiency and transparency in public procurement

• Complete the privatisation of Air France and France Telecom
• Set up a totally independent regulatory authority to oversee allocation of landing slots and servicing contracts in the civil aviation sector
• Enhance competition in the telecommunications sector by boosting the powers of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority
• Divest France Telecom of its cable affiliate as part of a strategy to strengthen competition in cable television
• Do more to simplify its public administration and make services user-friendly, for example by setting more “one-stop shops” where people could deal with all administrative matters, from filing tax returns to renewing driving licences, in one place.​

Product market competition and economic performances

Over the past decade, French economic growth has been insufficient to bring down high and persistent unemployment. Available cross-country evidence suggests that enhancing competition is an important means to improve economic performance. France is catching up with best practice in competition policy reform. However, other policy considerations often hamper the emergence of effective competition. Relatively weak competitive pressures remain in a number of sectors, particularly in sheltered service industries. Restrictions on competition reduce productivity growth and hinder job creation in regulated sectors. Policy must focus on giving more weight to overall consumer welfare in the face of opposition from relatively small but vocal special interest groups. This paper discusses reforms that would increase competition by: i) strengthening institutions and better clarifying their responsibilities with respect to competition enforcement; ii) reinforcing the ability of sector regulators to improve non-discriminatory third-party access and other aspects of competition in the network industries; iii) abolishing overly prescriptive regulation in the retail sector; and iv) removing unnecessary protection in some professional services.​

Environment

http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/3/44/34463341.pdf http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/13/17/34329041.pdf The need to manage pollution, natural resources and biodiversity in France continues to be a major challenge. The OECD Environmental Performance Review of France highlights the effectiveness of the environmental policy pursued by France, but also focuses on the need for better integration of environmental concerns into sectors such as energy, transport and agriculture. The review puts forward 49 recommendations with the aim of strengthening the initiatives under way in the field of sustainable development in France.

Some of the steps recommended to improve environmental protection are as follows:

• to review taxation policy from an environmental perspective;
• to reduce the damage caused by excessive use of nitrates and pesticides in agriculture;
• to reduce the energy intensity of the economy;
• to implement the measures planned to combat climate change;
• to integrate environmental concerns into the energy, transport and agriculture sectors;
• to improve enforcement of the legislation on mountain areas, coasts and landscapes, and of the EU habitats and birds directives at both the national and local level.

The Review’s conclusions recognise the significant results achieved in many areas:

• the progress made regarding legislation and management in the field of natural and technological risks;
• the growing awareness of the links between the environment and health and the stronger action being taken in this regard;
• efficient water management through a basin-level approach;
• adoption of the Environmental Charter;
• dynamic international co-operation (for example, in the field of climate change, biodiversity, development assistance and marine issues).

Surveys

• 2001
• 2001
• 2003
• 2007

Enlaces externos

Government Sites:

• Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrie (http://www.minefi.gouv.fr) Site of the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industry with general information for the public and businesses. (in French, English, German and Spanish)
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs (http://www.diplomatie.fr/index.html) A comprehensive site with sections on news, foreign policy, France in Europe, the French abroad, international co-operation, tourist advice and the Ministry itself. (in French, English, German and Spanish)
• Ministry of Education (http://www.education.gouv.fr/) This site presents the education system in France, teaching practices, programmes abroad, continuing education and administrative procedures with links to universities and educational organisations. (in French)
• Ministry of Culture and Communication (http://www.culture.fr/) Information on the Ministry, cultural events throughout France and European events with a portal to artistic, cultural and scientific Web Sites. (in French)
• Ministry of Employment, Labour and Social cohesion (http://www.emploi-solidarite.gouv.fr) (in French)
• Ministry of Civil Service and State Reform (http://www.fonction-publique.gouv.fr) (in French)
• Ministry of Ecology and Sustainable Development (http://www.ecologie.gouv.fr) (in French, English, Deutch, Spanish)
• Ministry of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and Rurality (http://www.agriculture.gouv.fr) (in French)

Other sites:

• National Institute for Economic and Statistical Studies (INSEE) (http://www.insee.fr/) Official Web site for French statistics with main indicators, facts and figures for France, publications,and producer price indexes. (in French and English)
• Portal to French Administration (http://www.service-public.fr/) Interministerial portal to the French administration and public services. (in French and English)
• Portal to the French Legal System (http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/) Comprehensive site on the French legal system with legal news and information on the French constitution, laws and international treaties. (in French only; English, German, Italian and Spanish versions are under construction)
• Francophone Media (http://www.afp.com/francais/links/?cat=links) List of French-speaking media produced by the French Press Agency. (in French)
• Tourism in France (http://www.tourisme.fr/) Official site of French tourist offices with helpful travel advice and resources. (in French and English)