Labor Law Newsletter, July 2025
Regulatory Section
Implementation of National Interprofessional Agreements on Senior Employment, Social Dialogue, and Career Transitions
On July 10, 2025, the Senate adopted, on second reading, the bill implementing the national interprofessional agreements promoting the employment of experienced workers and addressing the evolution of social dialogue. It is expected to be adopted by the National Assembly when Congress reconvenes.
The bill aims to transpose three national interprofessional agreements (ANI) dated November 14, 2024, and June 25, 2025, on the employment of older workers, the evolution of social dialogue, and career transitions and retraining.
The bill primarily transposes the agreement on the employment of experienced workers for measures falling under the legislative level.
In particular, it aims to:
- establish a requirement to negotiate every three years on employment, working conditions, and the improvement of working conditions for “experienced” employees in companies with at least 300 employees;
- Remove barriers to hiring older job seekers by creating a “valuing experience” contract for a period of five years. This open-ended contract would be available to job seekers registered with France Travail who are at least sixty years old, or as young as fifty-seven if a sector-specific agreement provides for it. The legislation allows an employee to retire as soon as they meet the conditions for a full pension and exempts the employer from the specific employer contribution of 30% on the amount of the retirement severance pay.
- Transforming the performance review into a career development review. This review would be offered in the employee’s first year with the company, then every four years, with a summary provided every eight years.
New Secure CERFA Form for Sick Leave: 2-Month Grace Period
In a press release dated June 27, 2025, the health insurance agency reminded the public that, effective July 1, 2025, the use of the new secure CERFA form for sick leave was mandatory, in accordance with the decree on the security of sick leave notices dated June 28, 2025.
However, the health insurance agency announced a grace period until September 1, 2025, to give all healthcare professionals and healthcare facilities time to order the new forms.
Therefore, as of September 1, 2025, any unsecured paper sick leave form will be rejected.
Entry into Force of the Reform of Wage Garnishment and New Decree Implementing the Digital Wage Garnishment Registry
Decree No. 2025-125 of February 12, 2025, concerning the new wage garnishment procedure, entered into force on July 1, 2025.
As of that date, prior authorization from the enforcement judge to initiate wage garnishment has been eliminated, and the implementation procedure has been entrusted to judicial officers. Thus, judicial officers may now directly issue a wage garnishment order without prior authorization if two cumulative conditions are met:
- An enforceable title establishing a liquid and due debt has been issued;
- The debtor employee has previously received a demand for payment that remains unpaid one month after its service.
Decree No. 2025-493 of June 3, 2025, effective July 1, 2025, sets forth the procedures for implementing the digital registry of wage garnishments, which will centralize all procedures, facilitating their management, monitoring, and coordination.
Verdict: Decree No. 2025-125 of February 12, 2025, concerning the new procedure for the garnishment of wages, and Decree No. 2025-493 of June 3, 2025, concerning the digital registry of wage garnishments, the procedure for the garnishment of wages, and the training of judicial officers responsible for the distribution of garnishments
Case Law Section
Employees’ Access to Personal Data Contained in Their Work Emails
According to the Court of Cassation, and pursuant to Article 4 of the GDPR, emails sent or received by an employee through their work email account constitute personal data to which the employee has a right of access even after the termination of their employment contract.
Furthermore, the Court stated that the employer must provide, in addition to these emails, the related metadata and their content, unless the requested information is likely to infringe upon the rights and freedoms of others.
Verdict : Cass. Soc., 18 juin 2025, n°23-19.022
New Proportionality Review of Late Payment Surcharges Imposed by URSSAF
The Court of Cassation has reversed its previous case law regarding the powers of the judicial court with respect to late payment surcharges imposed by URSSAF, which are punitive in nature.
Until now, the Court of Cassation did not consider late payment penalties to be a sanction but rather compensation for the harm suffered by URSSAF. However, in its ruling of April 10, 2025, the Court of Cassation now distinguishes between:
- Surcharges comparable to interest applied in the event of late payment of contributions, which are intended to provide financial compensation for a loss;
- And surcharges that may be classified as punitive sanctions.
Consequently, the Court of Cassation holds that it is incumbent upon the trial judges to assess whether the penalty imposed by the collection agency is proportionate to the seriousness of the offense committed.
Contributors may now request a reduction in late payment surcharges when they deem such surcharges disproportionate to the seriousness of the alleged breach.
In this case, the Court of Cassation overturned the lower court’s decision on the grounds that the judges should have assessed whether the penalty of 25,936 euros for a 25-day delay was appropriate in the context of the health crisis.
Verdict : Cass. Soc., 10 avril 2025, n°22-22.815
Discriminatory termination during the probationary period is subject to damages
The Court of Cassation held that an employee whose probationary period is terminated on discriminatory grounds is not entitled to the compensation provided for in the event of a null and void termination (6 months) pursuant to Article L. 1231-1 of the Labor Code, which provides that the provisions relating to the termination of an indefinite-term employment contract do not apply during the probationary period.
Thus, the employee is only entitled to damages to compensate for the harm resulting from this wrongful termination.
Verdict: Cass. Soc., 25 juin 2025, n°23-17.999
