France Private Payroll Employment Stable in Q1

Private payroll employment in France declined 0.1% quarter-on-quarter, or 25,800 jobs, in the third quarter of 2026, matching market expectations and following an identical decrease in the previous period. Compared with a year earlier, private employment fell 0.3% (-69,800 jobs), marking its seventh consecutive quarterly decline, though it remained 4.9% (+982,100 jobs) above its pre-pandemic level. Temporary employment rebounded, rising 1.3% (+8,900 jobs) after a 1.0% decline in the previous quarter, but remained 0.2% above its year-earlier level and 8.7% below its pre-pandemic level. Excluding temporary work, employment trends remained weak across sectors. Jobs in agriculture fell 1.9% (-6,000), industry declined 0.2% (-6,400), and construction contracted 0.4% (-6,100). Meanwhile, market services employment excluding temporary work edged down 0.1% (-12,000 jobs), while non-market services decreased 0.2% (-4,300 jobs).

Private payroll employment in France fell 0.1% quarter-on-quarter, or 24,300 jobs, to 21 million in the second quarter of 2026, confirming preliminary estimates and following a revised flat reading in the previous period. Compared with a year earlier, private employment was down 0.4% (-80,900 jobs), marking the sixth consecutive quarter of year-on-year decline, though it remained 5.1% (+1 million jobs) above its pre-pandemic level. Temporary employment continued to weaken, falling 1.0% (-6,700 jobs), leaving it below both its year-earlier level (-1.7%) and its pre-pandemic level (-9.9%). Excluding temporary work, employment declined in agriculture (-2.6%), construction (-0.4%) and industry (-0.1%), while market and non-market services were broadly stable. Within market services, accommodation and food services added 4,400 jobs, partly offsetting declines in information and communication and other services.

Private payroll employment in France fell 0.1% quarter-on-quarter, or 19,300 jobs, to 21 million in the second quarter of 2026, matching market expectations and remaining unchanged from the previous period. Compared with a year earlier, private employment was down 0.4% (-79,700 jobs), though it remained 5% (+1 million jobs) above its pre-pandemic level. Temporary employment continued to weaken, falling 1.4% (-9,700 jobs), leaving it below both its year-earlier level (-1.9%) and its pre-pandemic level (-10.4%). Excluding temporary work, employment trends were mixed across sectors. Jobs in agriculture declined 0.8% (-2,500 jobs), industry shed 0.1% (-3,200 jobs), while the construction contracted 0.4% (-6,100 jobs). Meanwhile, employment in both market services and non-market services excluding temporary work was stable. Despite the recent slowdown, France's private payroll employment remains well above pre-pandemic levels, standing 5% (+1 million jobs) higher than at the end of 2019.