France: New Bill on Senior Employees to Be Presented Before the French Parliament
On May 7th 2025, the French Cabinet adopted a bill seeking to extend to all companies existing national collective agreements about senior employees.
This bill includes several measures including the fact that all companies with over 300 employees will have to engage in collective bargaining every 3 years on this specific topic, which will, at a minimum, cover the hiring of staff aged over 45. It also covers the continued employment of such staff, pre-retirement measures, and the transfer of know-how.
The current mandatory mid-career meeting, which needs to be organised within 2 months after the mandatory mid-career health check, will be reinforced to cover a full review of the employee’s professional wishes and expectations on training and mobility. This will also be the case of the end-of-career meeting to be organised in the 2 years preceding the employee’s 60th birthday.
It should be noted that neither the current law nor the bill currently provides for any sanctions should the company fail to organise such mid-career and end-of-career meetings. However, not organising such meetings can be considered a breach of the company’s health and safety obligations allowing employees to claim damages should they suffer harm due to such meetings not being organised.
Key Action Points for Human Resources and In-House Counsel
Ensure that you organise mid-career and end-of-career meetings for the appropriate staff.
