Second Analysis of the Macron Ordonnances

The five ordonnances issued to reform French labour law were adopted by the Council of Ministers on 22 September, after advice from the State Council, and published in the officiel gazette on 23 September.

The reform is ambitious and will be difficult for companies to implement: five ordonnances, 159 pages, and multiple measures on subjects as diverse as the roles to be played by industry-wide agreements and company agreements, the merging of employee representation bodies, and compensation for dismissal.

These ordonnances are in line with the previous administration's reforms (the Rebsamen and El Khomri Acts) and yet break with them:

• they are in line with those earlier reforms as regards employee representation bodies and collective bargaining, but
• take a new tack with respect to dismissals, the rules governing litigation before the labour courts and occupational health risks.

We would therefore like to provide you with an analysis of the measures that we believe are the most important for companies in the four main ordonnances:

• the ordonnance on enhancing collective bargaining;
• the ordonnance on the new organisation of social and economic dialogue in companies and encouraging the exercise and promotion of union responsibilities;
• the ordonnance relating to improving the predictability and security of labour relations;
• the ordonnance relating to the occupational prevention account.

In order to ease your task, modifications made to the original analysis, sent on 19 September, are highlighted in red.

You can read these analyses by clicking on the links above or by browsing the table of contents on the right-hand side of the page.