Austerity and social dialogue
France
London meeting September 2012
Gilles Jeannot
Ecole des ponts
French civil service
• French civil service was organised in 1983
into three parts, State, local government,
hospital.(5,3 millions)
– State civil service (2,4 millions) (50 %
executives, managers “catégorie A”)
– Local government (1,8 million) (76%, workers
“catégorie C”).
– Hospitals (1,1 million)
• Civil servants are mainly on tenure (status)
Social dialogue
• National dialogue on wages
– Global adjustment to inflation “point” : open to media
– Salary grid by corps : specialized
– Bonus : secret
• National dialogue on rules (conseils supérieurs
de la fonction publique)
• Dialogue on personal questions (carrier,
mobility) is more active than dialogue on
organisation (health, reorganisations).
• Trade union competition (tension between
corporatists and non corporatists unions).
Trade unions
• 15 % membership ; 70 % participation elections
basis for official representation
• CGT (23,5 %) especially strong among workers
in municipalities, ex “communist” union, now
open to negotiation
• Force ouvrière (17,6 %) corporatist, now
confrontational
• Cfdt (16,8 %) non corporatist, open to
negotiation
• FSU (11,%) very strong among teachers
• SUD (9,6 %) extreme left, confrontational
Social dialogue reform (2010)
• New trade union representation rules (all trade
unions equal, elections held during one day
only)
• A joint statement is recognised only if signed by
unions representing 50 % of the voters and then
government is considered bound to the signed
agreement.
• Less formalism
• More importance put on organisation (health,
reorganisation) (basis for representation)
National austerity measures
wages
• “point” has grown up 2,8% for 2008-2011
for a 4,4% inflation.
– Specific compensation against loss : 56 000
public servants received on average 800
euros
– Half of the gain from staff reduction
redistributed (salary grids, overtime)
• Global salary : plus 2,9 % in 2009-2010.
• Bonus salary based on job level and
efficiency
National austerity measures : staff
reduction
• Non replacement of one out of two people
retiring
• - 75 000 in 2008 – 45 000 in 2009 for
State administration
• Simultaneously local government and
hospital staff growth
State public
service
(thousands)
Local
government
public service
Hospitals
total
Total
employement
France
Public
employement %
1996
2413
1222
885
4521
23055
19,6
1998
2452
1266
904
4622
23780
19,4
2000
2484
1328
931
4744
25006
19,0
2002
2557
1417
973
4947
25439
19,4
2004
2567
1525
1038
5130
25516
20,1
2005
2568
1564
1052
5185
25705
20,2
2006
2560
1612
1056
5228
26012
20,1
2007
2498
1704
1073
5276
26364
20,0
2008
2422
1771
1085
5278
26238
20,1
2009
2392
1806
1100
5298
26007
20,4
Source : rapport annuel de la fonction publique 2010-2011 , p. 302.
National social dialogue and
austerity
• The national dialogue on inflation
adjustment “point” has been cut
compensated by a technical discussion on
salary grids
• No discussion at all on large
reorganisations (revision générale des
politiques publiques) on a national level
and limited scope for local discussions
Local government public service
• Created in 1983, tension between an integrated
model (communists) and a decentralised model
(Deferre Marseille’s Mayor)… in fact real
autonomy.
• On a national level general rules are designed
for state civil service and then adapted for local
government
• On a national level it is difficult to find local
employer representatives (mayor associations
or superior council representatives ?)
• On a local level, tension between the mayor, the
staff directorate, and deputy mayors
Local government austerity ?
•
•
•
•
No staff reduction during the last years
But budget freeze in 2010
Reduction project after ?
Some specific austerity measure (case
studies)
Case study : Saint Etienne
Financial situation
• Industrial city close to Lyon in decline
(population declined 240 000 -> 175 000)
• The biggest debt per habitant among
French cities (2158 euros in front of
Marseille and Lille).
• Junk loans 150 millions loss for a 350
millions annual budget
Saint Etienne
• 2008 new mayor (socialist) and austerity plan
– + 9,5% on local taxes
– Investment limitation
– 1% maxi payroll growth with a “shift-age-technical
skills” of 3%)
– Limited staff reduction (100).
• Reorganisation
– Power concentration
– Rationalisation of street level organisations
(swimming pools, street cleaning, police, …)
Saint Etienne : social dialogue
• Formalised social dialogue procedures
mixing direct and indirect dialogue
• Special attention to psychological risks
• Real dialogue and conflict on street level
reorganisations
• Unease among medium managers
• Balanced impression : real confrontation
but dissatisfaction
Case study : Saint ouen
• A city in the neighbourhood of Paris with social
difficulties (drug traffic…)
• … and economic opportunities (in transition from
industrial to tertiary ; population growth / new 10
000 inhabitants building program)
• Regional audit commission accused the city of
spending too much (too many municipal staff per
habitant).
• Limited actions to contain cost expenses
(discussion before staff replacement, action
against absenteeism, ) 2% annual payroll growth
for 2010 and 2011 against 4 % before.
Saint Ouen: social dialogue
• A mixture of public debate with the population and social
dialogue
– 100 commitments to the population
– 21 decisions discussed with staff (indirect participation)
– Specific monitoring comities
• Vivid local comities on reorganisations (active
negotiation on street cleaning with financial
compensations for schedule modifications)
• Alert system : after a difficult conflict in school cleaning
and cafeteria, every time a trade union sees a strong
social problem, it has the right to a meeting with staff
directorate within two days (often one trade union and
often for individual problems).
Case study conclusion
• Modernisation continues
– Professional concentration of power against deputy
mayors local influence
– End of customary rules
– Customer oriented organisations
• Formalised form of social dialogue (in these
cities ?) but conflict culture.
• Best practices : mixture between indirect and
direct participation (Saint Etienne), mixture
between habitant participation and social
dialogue (Saint Ouen).
General conclusion
• Drastic measures have been taken just before
2008 encourages New public management
alignment more than austerity measures for
state administration
• Austerity is only at the beginning for local
government
• Austerity measures and reengineering in state
administration have not been discussed. This
contrasts with the new rules set to give more
legitimacy to social dialogue (2010 law)
• Social dialogue in municipalities (even if
sometimes open to conflict) seems more vivid.
And now ?
• Government change in 2012
• Creation of 60 000 jobs in schools but no
public service growth
• Very limited growth on minimum salary
and on “point”
• Undefined attitude towards local
government expenses (political weight of
socialist Senate)