Only 47% of employees on a limited-term contract (CDD or assisted contract) in 2008 were employed on permanent contracts seven years later, according to INSEE, which contrasts "the very stable state" of employees on permanent contracts. In this study published on Tuesday, INSEE compared the situation of employees under 50 in 2008, on permanent contracts, limited-term contracts, temporary workers or unemployed, with their fate in 2015.
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The institute observes that "employment on permanent contracts constitutes a very stable state": "73% of employees under 50 on permanent contracts in 2008 are still on permanent contracts seven years later, of which slightly more than half in the same company". The paths of employees initially on a limited-term contract (excluding temporary workers) in 2008 are, on the other hand, more diverse.
While 24% of them are employed on a permanent contract the following year, this proportion then increases moderately: only 47% are employed on a permanent contract seven years later.
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The transition to a permanent contract is more frequent among young people: among those aged 16-35 on a limited-term contract in 2008, 51% of women and 49% of men are on a permanent contract seven years later. Among the 36-50 year olds, this is only the case for 44% of women and 36% of men.
Their chance of obtaining a permanent contract nevertheless remains higher than that of employees on temporary work in 2008 (41% were on permanent contracts in 2015) or on unemployment benefits (28%).
People on limited contracts also endure more periods of compensated unemployment, both short-term and long-term: from the following year, 14% of them are mainly compensated unemployed, compared to 3% for employees initially on permanent contracts.
In total, 43% of employees on limited-term contracts in 2008 were unemployed on benefits for at least one of the following seven years (64% if we include the inactive and the unemployed without benefits), i.e. about twice as many as permanent employees.
INSEE recalls that the CDI remains "the employment standard" in France and covers 90% of the workforce in the private sector. On the other hand, 87% of non-temporary hires are on fixed-term contracts, with increasingly shorter contracts.
