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France unemployment and rising joblessness

Updated 6 times since CLSTR started tracking revisions of this situation.

What changed

2026-08-09 07:29 UTC → 2026-08-23 05:09 UTC · added ~~removed~~

France unemployment ~~benefits~~ and rising joblessness

The French unemployment rate rose to 8.3% in the second quarter of 2026, the highest level since autumn 2020. This increase of 62,000 people brought the total number of unemployed to 2.7 million, with youth unemployment (ages 15-24) reaching 21.6% and senior unemployment (ages 50+) at 5.5%. This rise is partially attributed to the automatic registration of RSA beneficiaries and young people aged 15-29. Economic pressures are further evidenced by a rise in corporate bankruptcies, which totaled 70,803 in the 12 months leading to June 2026. The agriculture, forestry, and fishing sectors experienced the most significant increase in bankruptcies at 16.5%. Concurrently, France Travail reported a 6.5% decline in hiring intentions for 2026 compared to the previous year, indicating a cooling labor market. The real estate sector is also slowing due to rising interest rates and reduced purchasing power, with expectations of declining credit production. While the economy maintains a high rate of new business creation—with over 1.2 million new companies established in the year ending June 2026—the broader economic environment remains strained by high energy prices and a general ~~slowdown, making~~ slowdown. Recent data indicates this marks the sixth consecutive quarter of rising unemployment. This trend poses a significant challenge to President Emmanuel Macron’s 2022 policy goal to reach a 5% unemployment ~~target~~ rate—the threshold for ~~2027 appear increasingly difficult to achieve.~~ full employment—by the end of his mandate in 2027. Despite previous labor law reforms and unemployment insurance restrictions, the target now appears “mathematically unreachable without a significant economic reversal.”

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