The “Great Resignation” finally crossed the Atlantic Ocean. In any case, the number of employees who have submitted their resignation to their employer has never been higher since the last financial crisis in 2008. This is the main lesson of a study by the Department of Animation Research, Studies and Statistics (Dares) published this Thursday.
According to figures collected by this entity attached to the Ministry of Labor, more than 520,000 employees, including 470,000 with indefinite contracts, resigned during the first quarter of 2022, a figure that has been steadily increasing for almost a year and a half. France had not crossed this symbolic threshold of half a million resignations since the first quarter of 2008, just before the great financial crisis spread to European countries.
One of the main causes of hiring tensions
The expression “Great Resignation” has been used for several months to refer to the situation in the US labor market, which is facing a veritable wave of employee departures, in search of a change. However, the case of France differs from the specific context of the United States where “the large number of resignations would rather be a symptom of hiring tensions than its cause,” according to Dares.
The two countries coincide, on the other hand, in their resignation rate, which is certainly high but not unprecedented. This indicator is obtained by relating the number of casualties to the active population and reached 2.7% in France in the first quarter of 2022, which remains below the maximum observed in 2008 (2.9%). For companies with more than 50 employees, this rate of resignation is now higher than it was at the time of the last global financial crisis (2.3% vs. 1.7%), but remains below the peak of 2.3%. in the first quarter of 2001.
Employees in a position of strength
Dares, however, asks that the number of resignations be put into perspective due to the current tensions in the labor market. “Hiring difficulties are at unprecedented levels in manufacturing and services, and at their highest point since 2008 in construction,” he notes.
More than opportunities, the magnitude of the recruitment difficulties allows employees to now be in an advantageous bargaining relationship with the employer. “Starting salaries are likely to increase, especially for people who have recently quit,” says Dares.
Finally, the labor market remains no less dynamic as for every ten employees with a permanent contract who resigned in the second half of 2021, eight found work during the following six months.
Source: BFM TV
