- Title: France to spend 1 bln euros to boost apprenticeships in bleak youth job market
- Date: 10th June 2020
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (JUNE 10, 2020) (REUTERS) CODIS IGS GROUP APPRENTICE TRAINING SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM CODIS IGS GROUP, WHO BECAME APPRENTICES, TALKING OUTSIDE SCHOOL STUDENTS ENTERING SCHOOL 18-YEAR-OLD STUDENT AND APPRENTICE, KELLY MUTSHU IMBAY, SPEAKING TO 28-YEAR-OLD STUDENT, CHEYENNE TISSERAND (SOUNDBITE) (French) STUDENT AT APPRENTICE TRAINING CENTRE CODIS AND APPRENTICE IN SWEETS STORE "A LA MERE DE FAMILLE", KELLY MUTSHU IMBAY, SAYING: "I'm not difficult, I'm willing to take on a bit of everything. And being that I already have three years of studies under my belt, I could work in any kind of company. I have not set my targets on a specific one. I'm here to discover several companies and different kinds of professions." TISSERAND, IMBAY AND FELLOW STUDENT, ARTHUR MENAGE, TALKING CODIS IGS GROUP DIRECTOR, CAROLINE COSTA SAVELLI, LISTENING STUDENTS AND SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS TALKING INSIDE CLASSROOM (SOUNDBITE) (French) DIRECTOR OF APPRENTICE TRAINING CENTER CODIS IGS GROUP, CAROLINE COSTA SAVELLI, SAYING: "We are behind compared to last year, with the placement of apprentices (in companies). But with the announcement of the government's measures, we feel that things are restarting, so maybe we would just be delaying the start dates." (SOUNDBITE) (French) TRAINING DIRECTOR AT APPRENTICE TRAINING CENTER CODIS IGS GROUP, ANNE PERRET, SAYING: "Some companies have begun saying that they are hesitating to pursue their apprentice contracts for the second year of training. They have not confirmed that they will terminate the contracts, but they are questioning." ADMINISTRATORS TALKING TO STUDENTS (SOUNDBITE) (French) DIRECTOR OF APPRENTICE TRAINING CENTER CODIS IGS GROUP, CAROLINE COSTA SAVELLI, SAYING: "The impact (on job recruitment) is more felt among those who did vocational studies, businesses in the area who don't deal in food, who are quite affected. For the rest, we are a bit behind (in finding apprenticeships for students), but with just a bit of a delay, we can catch up." VARIOUS OF STUDENTS IN CLASSROOM IN SCHOOL
- Embargoed: 24th June 2020 15:10
- Keywords: Bruno Le Maire France economy jobs youth
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA002CHSFJGN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: France will spend an extra billion euros on a programme to boost apprenticeships in French companies as part of new measures to soften the impact of the coronavirus crisis on employment.
The additional state support for the apprentice scheme - one of the government's unsung successes before the crisis hit - was announced after President Emmanuel Macron met with trade unions and employers at the Elysee palace.
"We have measures that seek to support the hiring of apprentices so that we will not have hundreds of thousands of youth facing closed doors the moment they enter the job market," Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Wednesday (June 10) after a cabinet meeting at the Elysee Palace.
State support for hiring apprentices under 18 will be raised to 5,000 euros from 4,125 euros, and for apprentices 18 or older to 8,000 euros from 5,125 euros.
France is keen to avoid a wave of layoffs and is also betting on a German-inspired scheme to financially encourage firms to keep workers on their books, reducing their hours instead of cutting jobs.
Students at an apprentice training school CODIS IGS Group said their apprenticeships gave them valuable work experience.
Eighteen-year-old CODIS student Kelly Mutshu Imbay said she would not be too choosy given a bleak labour market.
"I'm not difficult… I could work in any kind of company. I have not set my targets on a specific one. I'm here to discover several companies and different kinds of professions," Mutshu Imbay said.
Keeping workers in their jobs, even with reduced hours, would help preserve skills and allow for a quicker rebound once demand for French products picks up again, presidential advisers say.
School training director Anne Perret said some companies where they place apprentices, such a shoe shop in an area, have expressed hesitations about keeping contracts for a second year.
"With the announcement of the government's measures, we feel that things are re-starting, so maybe we would just be delaying the start dates," CODIS director Caroline Costa Savelli said.
Macron moved quickly to transform the job market in the first years of his presidency, making it easier to hire and fire workers in a bid to cut an unemployment rate that had historically remained high even in good times.
His aim, before the coronavirus crisis, was to bring it down to 7% by the end of his mandate in 2022. Containing the rise in unemployment will however be a key factor in Macron's possible re-election bid.
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