As expected, passage in the Senate caused the budget to undergo serious changes. The upper house voted on Saturday November 22 to increase employees’ annual working hours by an additional twelve hours, from 1,607 to 1,619 hours per year. During this time, the day after the Court of Cassation legalized the possibility of forcing an employee to work twelve days in a row.
The amendment by UDI senator Olivier Henno, voted for by a majority alliance between the right and center at the Luxembourg Palace, was adopted by 199 votes to 135 as part of an overhaul of the Social Security budget. The chances of these amendments producing a final version of the text appear non-existent, as most lawmakers have expressed their doubts about the ability of both chambers to agree on a joint text for 2026.
On the other hand, the amendment is a way for senators to relaunch the ultra-sensitive debate over working time, and the right wing in parliament sees it as a great way to fill Social Security’s coffers. “We will not be able to get out of this situation if we do not create more wealth. To generate more wealth, we have to invest more, but the most important thing is to increase working hours”confirmed by Olivier Henno, who is also fighting against increases in capital levies, such as a flat tax. And an elected official from North Korea provided concrete information to see the impact of his proposal on French citizens’ working hours, which will not return to the 35 hours per week prescribed by law: “Twelve hours of paid work per year equals one hour per month, 15 minutes per week.” It doesn’t seem so bad, he said, while he estimates annual profits of more than 10 billion euros thanks to this expanded base.
Leftists rebelled against this proposal “arbitrary and unfair”. “How can you talk about invisible efforts in terms of increasing work time for fellow citizens who do difficult jobs?”socialist Simon Uzenat expressed his despair at the attention of right-wing groups, while criticizing “an absolute provocation”.
This step clearly does not have full support from the government. “This is heavy,” was the reaction of Labor Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou. The former SNCF president might say “solidarity” regarding the purpose of the measure – to fill the deficit – he considers it inappropriate to implement it within the framework of this budget, returning this “debate line” see you next time, esp “as part of the Work and Pensions social conference” which will open on December 5.
This is not the first time the Senate has put forward a proposal of this kind: last year it decided to add additional solidarity days (free work) to finance autonomy. Former Prime Minister François Bayrou also invested in this area with his much-criticized proposal to eliminate two national holidays. Two unsuccessful proposals.
