International employers should note that there are some important differences between the way overtime is viewed – and paid for – in France and other countries.
For example, overtime in France is strictly regulated to protect employees from excessive hours of work. While unpaid overtime is common in some countries, French employees must be paid for any hours worked beyond the standard 35-hour working week.
How is overtime paid in France?
The French Labour Code ensures that employees are fairly compensated for hours worked over the standard weekly amount. As such, for the first eight hours of overtime (i.e. hours 36 to 43), employees will usually receive a 25% pay increase. This amount rises to 50% for subsequent overtime.
It is important to note that a collective agreement can provide for lower rates of overtime pay, at a minimum of 10%. This is one of the rare circumstances under which an agreement may offer less favourable conditions than those set out by the Labour Code.
The French annual overtime quota
Most French employees have an individual overtime quota. This is set at 220 hours per calendar year, unless a collective agreement (at company or industry level) provides for a different amount. Employers who require their staff to work beyond this quota must consult the company’s CSE, if one exists.
Employees who exceed their overtime quota must also receive additional compensation in the form of compulsory time off in lieu (Contrepartie Obligatoire en Repos, or COR), if such overtime is worked at the employer’s request. This is in addition to a pay supplement of 50% of the overtime hours worked, or 100% in companies with 20 or more employees.
Note that a collective bargaining agreement may stipulate more favourable conditions for employees working overtime beyond their annual quota, so it is important to check the details carefully.
Overtime in France can become very expensive, very quickly. However, employers may use time off in lieu (TOIL) to keep their finances in check.
A company or industry-level collective agreement must be established to compensate overtime with TOIL (rather than an additional payment as described above), which would not count towards the employee’s overtime quota.
Such time must be equivalent to the overtime hours worked, plus the pay supplement that would have otherwise been paid. For example, one hour uplifted by 25% would be equivalent to one hour and 15 minutes of TOIL.
What ‘rest day’ obligations apply under a forfait-jour agreement?
Réduction du temps de travail (RTT),which provides for the allocation of whole or half rest-days to employees who work more than 35 hours per week, does not normally apply to forfait jour agreements. For forfait jour agreements, rest days are referred to as jours de repos. (Link to: https://www.viridianhr.co.uk/blog/conventions-de-forfait-fixed-working-time-agreements-in-france/).
Working time is not measured in hours under a forfait jour agreement. Instead, the employee agrees to work a specified number of days per year (up to a maximum of 218), so the rules governing maximum weekly hours and overtime do not apply. However, employers must still ensure that the legal provisions for daily and weekly mandatory rest are adhered to. Additionally, forfait jour agreements provide for additional jours de repos each year, usually 8 to 10 days but the calculation needs to be done each year for accuracy.
The main benefit of the forfait jour agreement for employers is the fact that no overtime applies if it is managed correctly.
The employer must meet with individual employees who have signed forfeit jour agreements at least once every year.
This meeting should take the form of a specific interview, during which the employer must ensure that the employee’s workload is reasonable, and that they are taking the appropriate rest time. Note that forfait-jour agreements can only be signed by executive staff (cadres), and employees who have genuine autonomy over their working time.
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