The expected savings from reducing sick leave compensation in the public sector are not materializing as hoped. Public sector employees are adopting strategies to retain their full salary despite the reform. Announced in October 2024, this measure aimed to curb costly absenteeism for the state.
In autumn 2024, budget debates stirred tensions among civil servants. Public Service Minister Guillaume Kasbarian announced in Le Figaro a plan to combat absenteeism in the public sector. The plan proposed extending waiting days from 1 to 3 and reducing sick leave reimbursement from 100% to 90%, aligning the public sector with the private one.
The executive justified these measures by the high cost of absenteeism, estimated at 15 billion euros for the state in 2022 according to the General Inspectorate of Finances (IGF). Unions reacted strongly, calling the reform stigmatizing for employees.
However, the savings achieved since implementing these changes fall short of expectations. Civil servants are employing strategies to receive their full salary, thereby circumventing the restrictions. The fall of the Barnier government has also affected the application of these reforms, limiting their impact.
This situation highlights the challenges of budgetary reform in the public sector, where savings goals encounter practical and organizational resistances.