Low-skilled jobs: the French strategy

"Since 1995, French governments implemented a specific strategy aiming at lowering unemployment or inactivity of so called unskilled workers, in fact of low wage workers. This strategy used two tools: cuts in employers’ social contributions reduce companies’ costs for hiring low-wage workers; t...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Sterdyniak, Henri
Institution:ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
Format: TEXT
Language:English
Published: Paris 2007
OFCE
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19291895124910190779-Low-skilled-jobs-the-French-st.htm
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author Sterdyniak, Henri
author_facet Sterdyniak, Henri
collection Library items
description "Since 1995, French governments implemented a specific strategy aiming at lowering unemployment or inactivity of so called unskilled workers, in fact of low wage workers. This strategy used two tools: cuts in employers’ social contributions reduce companies’ costs for hiring low-wage workers; the Prime Pour l’Emploi, PPE, raises low-wage workers’ incomes, and increases the gap between wage and assistance benefits in order to increase incentives for low-wage workers to take a job. The paper provides a description of the situation of unskilled workers in France. It describes the history of measures lowering employers’ contributions on low wages, presents and discusses the studies that have tried to assess the impact of such measures on employment. These cuts cost approximately 18 billion euros in 2007. An average estimate of about 550,000 jobs created would have an ex post cost of 9 billion euro, i.e. 176,000 euros per created job. The history and the structure of the PPE are presented. According to existing studies, the PPE would not have a significant effect on labour supply. Should it be concluded from it that there is not inactivity trap? Or, on the contrary, that the trap is very deep? The current debate on the appropriateness to maintain employers’ contribution and PPE or to reform them is addressed."
format TEXT
geographic France
id 19291895124910190779_f51c4c097b3c40c6a193e9519c2bbc22
institution ETUI-European Trade Union Institute
is_hierarchy_id 19291895124910190779_f51c4c097b3c40c6a193e9519c2bbc22
is_hierarchy_title Low-skilled jobs: the French strategy
language English
physical 29 p.
Digital
publishDate 2007
publisher Paris
OFCE
spellingShingle Sterdyniak, Henri
employment policy
low wages
statistics
unskilled worker
Low-skilled jobs: the French strategy
thumbnail https://www.labourline.org/Image_prev.jpg?Archive=117433593561
title Low-skilled jobs: the French strategy
topic employment policy
low wages
statistics
unskilled worker
url https://www.labourline.org/KENTIKA-19291895124910190779-Low-skilled-jobs-the-French-st.htm