On Tuesday, December 2, the CGT, FSU and Solidaires are calling for demonstrations and moves to oppose the draft finances for 2026. A chance to reconsider the belief the French have of unions. Opposite to well-liked trust, they usually accept as true with unions to shield them.
In France, unions had been described as forever in disaster because the Nineteen Eighties. The speed of unionization is low (10.3% in 2019), participation in skilled elections or moves is declining, and accept as true with in unions is within the minority. The development of a number of social actions outdoor the union framework, such because the Yellow Vest motion and extra just lately the Block All motion, additionally fueled this declining discourse. The similar applies to the mass use of teleworking after the well being disaster which might give a contribution to expanding distance from unions within the place of work.
Distrust of business unions, a delusion that must be put into viewpoint
Alternatively, a more in-depth exam of the connection between workers and business unions qualifies this sort of feminine discourse. Subsequently, there is not any scarcity of examples of the mobilization of business union organizations that experience had some good fortune in recent times in the case of the participation and recognition of workers, beginning with the motion in opposition to the pension reform initiatives for the spring of 2023 or the iciness of 2019-2020. Nearer to us, the unions collected between 500,000 and 1 million other folks at the streets on September 18, 2025 and every other 200,000 to 600,000 on October 2. And, if the “Block everything” motion was once supported by way of 46% of the French, this quantity reached 518% of the inter-union motion for September.
Subsequently, it’s related to diversify the sorts of paintings engagement now not restricted to union club or resorting to strike, as an example by way of learning participation in skilled elections, union discussions amongst colleagues or participation in numerous techniques in social actions, which additionally permits to bear in mind the unequal publicity of workers to other sorts of paintings engagement.
On the identical time, worker “trust” in unions has modified little or no because the past due Seventies. In 1978, 50.1% of workers depended on unions in keeping with Cevipof’s post-election survey, in comparison to 44% in 2024 in keeping with Cevipof’s political accept as true with barometer, despite the fact that France’s unionization price has fallen sharply over the similar length.
This paradox is located on a Ecu scale. Because the chart underneath displays, accept as true with in unions varies from 12 months to 12 months. This doesn’t appear to be associated with social mobilizations or macroeconomic signs. Alternatively, we notice that the 2 ancient levels by which this accept as true with is weakest coincide with the presidency of the socialists François Mitterrand and François Hollande. This outcome confirms that, with a left-wing executive, the French take a extra liberal stance, whilst with a right-wing executive, they call for extra redistribution.
Chart: Workers’ accept as true with in business unions (in %) (1978-2024)
French Submit-Election Surveys 1978, 1988 and 2012, French Electoral Fee 2002 Wave 2, Move-Regional Surveys of Political Phenomena 1985, 1987 and 1989, Find out about of Ecu Values France 1981, 1990 and 208, 208, 208 Survey supplied by way of creator (no reuse)
After all, overcoming this perception of “trust” permits us to offer a extra certain symbol of unions. Certainly, this perception turns out problematic. The level of accept as true with may also be expressed in a normal manner (feeling of accept as true with) or for a selected objective (protection of employment, wages, operating stipulations, and so forth. on the native degree, on the sector degree or on the nationwide degree) and, within the latter case, the capability of business unions to behave is dependent now not handiest on them, but in addition at the political, financial and social context.
Thus, the diversification of signs that measure the picture that workers have about unions unearths a robust call for for unions and a definite appreciation in their actions. That is proven by way of a number of research performed in France or on a Ecu scale. In line with the post-election polls that we performed in 2022 after which in 2024 as a part of the CERTES mission, greater than 60% of workers trust the truth that unions supply services and products to workers (64% in 2022, 62.8% in 2024).
The belief of business unions in France, a politically divisive factor
The belief of unions by way of workers is due to this fact relatively certain in France. Alternatively, this varies relying on their skilled positions, their paintings relationships with control and co-workers and, to a lesser extent, in keeping with their social profile. It additionally varies very much relying on their different affairs of state.
So, in Europe as in France, the extra workers are at the left, the extra they’ve a favorable belief of unions. We explored this courting in additional element in keeping with the 2024 post-election survey performed on-line by way of Cluster 17 in July 2024 on a pattern of five,109 respondents, consultant of the French inhabitants elderly 18 and over, the use of the quota approach.
Desk: The angle of workers against business unions in keeping with their affairs of state
2024 CERTES Venture Submit-Election Survey., Supplied by way of creator (no reuse)
We built, routinely and proscribing ourselves to two,287 hired respondents, 4 categories of eleven opinion questions (build up in wages, conditionality of social help, supervision of dismissals, immigration, ecology, feminism, rights of sexual and gender minorities, reputation of the state of Palestine):
“Identitarians” are characterised by way of their hostility to immigration, feminism, environmentalism and LGBTKIA+ rights, slightly meritocratic perspectives on employment, and robust opposition to any normal salary build up.
“Meritocrats” have extra meritocratic perspectives than the former crew, however are extra tolerant in terms of immigration or girls’s and LGBTKIA+ rights, with out being revolutionary.
“Liberals” are characterised by way of somewhat extra pronounced opposition to any normal build up in wages and rather better tolerance at the factor of immigration, girls’s rights and LGBTKIA+ other folks.
“Progressives” are characterised by way of revolutionary attitudes in any respect ranges, together with the rejection of any conditionality on social help.
Whilst within the first spherical of the 2024 parliamentary elections, 68% of progressives voted for the New Other folks’s Entrance (NFP) – 48% of Identitarians and 36% of meritocrats voted for the Nationwide Meeting (RN) – our analysis unearths that 90% of progressives assume unions supply services and products to workers, in comparison to part of meritocrats or liberals.
The variations also are very vital if we believe the perspective of workers against the social motion Spring 2023 in opposition to pension reform: virtually 90% of progressives say they participated in it or make stronger it, in comparison to about 45% of identification and meritocrats and infrequently 30% of liberals.
To the contrary, the variations are a lot much less vital if union club on my own is taken into consideration, even though in 2024, in contrast to in earlier elections, union participants voted considerably extra to the left than non-unionists. So if 30% of progressives are unionized, that is nonetheless true of 16% of identitarians, 15% of meritocrats, and 10% of liberals.
Unions weakened by way of their political positions?
The certain belief of business unions and social actions is thus a lot more standard than business union club itself, however a lot more politically divided.
Opposite to well-liked trust, distrust of unions will have to due to this fact be put into viewpoint: in spite of their small numbers, they don’t impress extra destructive evaluations than up to now and nonetheless set up to mobilize an important a part of the team of workers. However those new signs of union affect, specifically their belief by way of workers and their talent to mobilize, also are extra politically divided.
This outcome due to this fact sheds new gentle on eager about the connections between business unionism and alliance politics and techniques that can exist. It additionally permits us to query the theory in keeping with which the political positions of the unions, in opposition to the RN, and even in choose of the left for sure facilities, as in 2024, would give a contribution to their weakening. Relatively, the other could be true: it places them in step with workers who, even with out a union, worth them and take part of their movements.
