2026 Budget: Unions stand firm against public sector job cuts

The years go by and look the same for civil servants. In his plan to generate €43.8 billion in savings, which he presented on Tuesday, July 15, François Bayrou assures that "the State will set an example." And his employees will be heavily involved. They are particularly affected by the "blank year" decided by the government, since no general or categorical revaluation measures will be granted. The potion is bitter for them, since this is the third consecutive year that this has been the case.

The Prime Minister also announced the elimination of 3,000 civil service jobs and, from 2027, the non-replacement of one in three retiring employees. A large part of these savings should come through the "reorganization" of state operators and agencies through " reinternalizations," mergers, or eliminations. Between "1,000 and 1,500 jobs will be eliminated" in 2026, declared the Prime Minister.

Unsurprisingly, the unions consider the government's plan unacceptable. "Public sector employees have been working for a while now, this is the third consecutive year without pay, it's becoming very complicated," says Mylène Jacquot. For the general secretary of the CFDT-Fonctions publiques, "it's the return of the plane." with the job cuts, "but we still don't ask ourselves the question of the public policies to be implemented."

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