Crack down on benefits abuse
Tighter laws will force employed people to look for work and will reduce payments if they do not take it.
Jobseekers who refuse two offers of work located less than one hour away from their home will have their benefits stopped according to a law adopted by the Assembly yesterday.
The new law places stricter obligations on jobseekers aiming to get them back into employment more quickly.
After four months of unemployment someone who is looking for work will have to accept an offer of employment which pays at least 95% of their former salary, 85% after six months and after a year accept a job which pays the equivalent of the jobseekers allowance. This does not apply to jobseekers who are undertaking training.
The move has faced strong opposition from unions and jobseekers’ associations, as well as the political left who put forward 1,500 amendments to the law.
Socialist Party MP Michel Issindou called the law “humiliating for jobseekers.”
Jobs minister Laurent Wauquiez said : “The main aim is to make a more personalised service to help people find the right job, but also to control abuse of the system.”
Jobseekers aged 57-and-a-half and over will also lose their dispensations allowing them to claim benefits without actively looking for work.
The Assembly also voted for the government’s proposition to create a new mediator service to deal with jobseekers’ grievances with the Agence Nationale Pour l’Emploi (ANPE).
Photo:Alexander Radev
