Foreign companies: You’re coming to work in France?
What you should know about occupational health and safety: your obligations, your responsibilities, your contacts.
What formalities?
For posting an employee in France in satisfactory conditions, the main administrative formalities and information to be known are as follows:
- prior notice,
- minimum wage,
- bonuses and compensation,
- working time and breaks,
- leave,
- social welfare,
- rules relating to occupational hygiene, health and safety
Follow-up and management of social security cover
CLEISS, the liaison body between the French social security institutions and their foreign counterparts, has been assigned by public authorities to manage and follow up social security cover for posted workers. CLEISS is authorised to extend the duration of posting of foreigners in France.
CARSATs, businesses’ occupational health and safety partners
The occupational health and pension insurance funds (CARSATs), and the General Social Security Funds (CGSS) in French overseas “départements”, insure businesses for occupational accidents (e.g. they set the contribution rate and decide on any reductions or increases in premiums). They are responsible for promoting and coordinating risk prevention.
For any question regarding occupational risk prevention, please do not hesitate to contact the CARSAT of the region in which you are working.
Worth knowing
- Labour inspection and enforcement of the Labour Code are performed by the Regional Directorates for Enterprises, Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs, Labour and Employment (DIRECCTE).
- To set up a company in France, you can fill out an online form which covers several administrative formalities.
Do you know that in France...?
In France, like in all countries, there are specific requirements regarding occupational health and safety.
For example, do you know that:
- the operators of self-propelled trucks, aerial work platforms and other machinery have a certificate of proficiency called the “CACES”?
- the frequency of compulsory checks on work equipment can differ from one country to another?
- one must always obtain information concerning the presence of asbestos-containing materials before performing work in a building constructed prior to 1997?
- in the event of concurrent work by contractors, specific documents must be drawn up?
- work on ladders is in theory prohibited?
- only those people having special authorisation are entitled to work on or in the vicinity of electrical installations?
- employees must have an occupational medical check-up