After several weeks of protests over purchasing power and young people’s economic circumstances, the French government announced that the minimum wage will rise by 1.6% from December 1.
According to the announcement, the net minimum wage will reach about 1,502 euros, crossing the 1,500-euro threshold. The monthly increase is 23.65 euros.
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Labor Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou explained at a press conference that the government had decided to bring forward the automatic 1.6% increase to December 1 from its originally scheduled date of January 1.
The current minimum wage in France is 1,477.93 euros. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said this was the second-largest increase in the past 20 years and that its significance should not be underestimated.
After meeting with representatives of unions and employers’ federations, Lecornu stressed that the measure was designed to avoid job losses.
Farandou presented the decision as support for workers and an incentive for sectors to negotiate better pay. He urged representatives of professional sectors to begin talks as early as next week so that minimum wages under collective agreements can rise and be brought into line with the new SMIC level.
The unions, however, were not convinced. CFDT leader Marilise Léon said the increase was not enough, while CGT leader Sophie Binet described it as “crumbs.” Binet said they had not gone there to ask for charity and called for further protests on November 17.
France is among the European countries with the highest minimum wages. Eurostat data show that, in 2024, its minimum wage amounted to 67% of average income in the country. About 12.7% of French workers earn the minimum wage or an amount close to it, compared with 8% in Germany and 3.5% in the Netherlands.
France’s minimum wage is usually adjusted automatically for inflation in January, although under certain circumstances it can also rise during the year. Such changes directly affect labor costs, making them a sensitive subject of political debate.
The government is seeking to ease public discontent while rising public debt limits its options for economic intervention. The protests began in high schools in September and then spread amid concerns about the rising cost of living, the quality of public services and political deadlock.
This is taking place five months before the presidential election. According to opinion polls, far-right candidate Marine Le Pen could face radical-left representative Jean-Luc Mélenchon in the second round.
President Emmanuel Macron is nearing the end of his second term and has recorded historically low levels of support in the polls. He cannot run for a third term.
