Articles

France, where individual freedom is highly prized, is a bastion of workplace privacy. French rule of law finds support in Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which provides a right to respect for one's private life, family life, home and correspondence, subject only to restrictions deemed strictly necessary in a democratic society. In addition, Article 9 of the French Civil Code provides that everyone has the right to respect for his private life. Both of these provisions apply to employees in the workplace and during working time. The employee’s right to privacy extends to conversations and communications that take place at work or within work systems.

Heinz Weil will participate in the conference organized by the Academy of European Law (ERA) to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Jean Monnet program in Brussels on October 16th, 2019.

A French feminist activist, Françoise Giroud, famously declared forty years ago: “Women will have gained equality only when incompetent women reach positions of power”. If the career gap between men and women has certainly narrowed as compared to when women entered the employment market after WWII, both genders are still far from being on equal footing and the above mentioned quote still sounds relevant

As a reminder: to combat money laundering and terrorist financing, European Directive 2015/849/EU of 20 May 2015 imposed a number of new obligations on European Union Member States, including the creation of a national central register of beneficial owners

A new Act was passed in France on May 4, 2010, which reduces the scope of the redeployment obligations resting on an employer before any economic dismissal (individual or collective) . According to this Act, an employer is now only required to search for redeployment positions that offer “equivalent compensation” and meet certain restrictions expressed by the employee.

Although France has no legislation that specifically addresses the access to or use of social media in the workplace, such activity implicates a number of important laws in this country. French law closely guards individual freedom and privacy, both in society at large and within the workplace.

The French Supreme Court, in its ruling of December 8th, 2009, invalidated the whistleblowing scheme contained in Dassault Systèmes' code of business conduct. For the first time since Sarbanes-Oxley Act (“SOX”) in 2002, the scope of which extends to any foreign subsidiary of a company listed in the U.S.A., the French Supreme Court considered the validity of a whistleblowing scheme. Foreign subsidiaries of companies listed in the U.S.A. find themselves hemmed in by SOX provisions and local regulations, with the obligation to comply with both.

Ten years ago, the French term “plan social” was changed into “plan de sauvegarde de l’emploi” (“PSE”), which literally means “job preservation plan”. This modification was meant to underline the fact that the primary goal of these plans is to create rather than destroy jobs.

This article addresses the impact of social networks in the French workplace at the recruitment stage, the risk of disciplinary actions based on social media postings, the employer’s right to access electronic communications on the employee’s computer, and social media policies.

A new statutory law was adopted in France in 2002, which widens the scope of sexual harassment by eliminating the prerequisite according to which the harasser must be a superior: “horizontal” harassment (among two co-workers on the same level of the org. chart) and even harassment from a subordinate towards a superior are now admitted. The harasser must have a sexual goal in mind, but the victim’s career is not necessarily at stake

Mathilde Houet-Weil of Weil & Associés (France) discussed reforms that France has recently enacted to provide additional benefits and protections for independent workers working for companies that exchange or sell goods or provide services through an electronic platform.

Hiring independent contractors is particularly appealing in France where the classical employee status comes with significant constraints and risks. However, in a context where employees’ rights are fiercely protected, there is a strong resistance against the current on-demand economy trend and companies should carefully double-check whether the independent contractor criteria are met.

With two new legislation enacted in 2019, France aims at encouraging entrepreneurship and innovation by lightening constraints and burdens to company growth. On May 22nd, 2019, France adopted the Law Nr. 2019-486 on Business Growth and Transformation, also known as the “PACTE Law”, which contains a large range of measures covering many aspects of company life intended to encourage small and medium-sized companies (SME) to grow and create jobs. The second Law of July 19th, 2019 on the Simplification, Clarification and Updating of company law (called “SOILIHI Law”), that came into force on July 21st, 2019, also makes several changes to corporate law and brings new simplification to the legal environment. This Newsletter focuses on the main provisions which directly relate to corporate law and M&A transactions.

In an updated report, Innangard and WEIL & ASSOCIES provide legal advice on how to handle workers' misclassifications in key jurisdictions and the practice of "independent contracting" in France.

Innangard and WEIL & ASSOCIES publish a report on sexual harassment in the workplace providing a quick comparative overview over definitions, responsibilities, sanctions and preventive measures.

Weil & Associes

With a new law enacted on July 30, 2018, French law includes a legislative provision on the protection of trade secrecy. Before that date, trade secrecy was not defined and was protected throughout scattered provisions in various Codes. The protection of trade secrets stemmed from the general principles of civil liability in tort or contractual civil liability if there was a confidentiality clause.