Remuneration: employees want their share of the takeover

This August 23, the time to go back to school had not yet sounded that the Minister of the Economy launched the offensive. “There is a subject that I do not give up, it is the best remuneration of those who have the lowest remuneration”, launched Bruno Le Maire, inaugurating the new season of France 2’s morning show, “Les Quatre Vérités”. “Growth must benefit everyone, without exception, even the weakest, even the least qualified, all those who have been at the forefront of the crisis, this is a question that must be asked collectively. “

In the mind of Mr. Le Maire, the idea is not new. He had already expressed it in January 2020, during his greetings to the press. France then lived to the rhythm of demonstrations against the pension reform, after months of mobilization of “yellow vests”. “The wage question is one of the fundamental questions of the new capitalism”, said the minister then. “What is this new capitalism? A capitalism that reduces inequalities and guarantees everyone a decent level of wages through their work ”, specified the tenant of Bercy.

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Twenty months and a health crisis later, Mr. Le Maire chose to relaunch the subject on the eve of the Medef summer school, while announcing the end of “whatever the cost”. A way of throwing a stone in the garden of companies which, since March 2020, have received 80 billion euros in public aid (excluding guaranteed loans from the State), while the economic recovery is confirmed: growth should exceed 6% in 2021, according to INSEE forecasts published on Tuesday, September 7.

Overtime

Of course, economists point out, despite a drop in GDP of 8% in 2020, household income has been generally preserved, thanks, in particular, to partial unemployment. And the return to activity also allows employees to recover overtime and other bonuses that had disappeared. “The effects of the crisis on wages are being erased”, according to Fabien Guggemos, head of the wages and income division at INSEE. Taking into account the assistance provided to households, purchasing power even increased by 0.4% in 2020 and should increase by 1.8% in 2021.

Yes, but at the same time, companies are now enjoying a very favorable financial situation: their margin rate reached 35.9% in the first quarter of 2021, a record since… 1951. As for the giants of the CAC 40, they have made more than 60 billion euros in profits in the first half of the year, which is 41% more than in the same period of 2019.

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