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French Employment Law and the 35 hour
week
The 35 hour working week came into force in France on 1 January 2000 for undertakings with more than 20 employees and on 1 January 2002 for all other undertakings in France.
It should be made clear that whilst 35 hours is henceforth the statutory working week, the 35 hours period is not a maximum nor for that matter a minimum period (in that part-time working for a fewer number of hours is still possible).
An employer may put into place a number of hours lower than 35 or indeed a higher number; subject in the latter respect to complying with the regulations on overtime as well as the maximum amount of weekly working time permitted (48 hours).
The legislation relating to working time applies to all undertaking which are set up on French soil and to virtually all sectors of activity, the only exceptions being:
· Sectors of activity governed by separate and specific legislation (agriculture, French merchant navy, fishing industry, civil service, public passenger transport)
· The public sector generally, with the exception of certain commercial and industrial QUANGOs
Whilst the provisions on the 35 hour working week are generally held to be applicable to all salaried employees in France, outwith the above specific exceptions, the application of the 35 hour working week to certain groups of employees (travelling salespeople, domestic staff etc) is perceived currently to be enforced slightly more flexibly.
Finally, it should be noted that the 35 hour working week is calculated on the basis of the “la durée de travail effectif” or the effective duration of work undertaken; being defined as the time during which the employee is held to be at the disposal of the employer and to be in a position to carry out the employer’s instructions without being able to undertake freely his or her personal activities.
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