Labor effects of corporate groups in France
| Autor | David Jonin |
| Cargo | Phd Candidate, University of Leuven |
| Páginas | 17-36 |
IUSLabor 3/2017
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LABOR EFFECTS OF CORPORATE GROUPS IN FRANCE
David Jonin
Attorney, Partner, Gide Loyrette Nouel Paris
Introduction
As a matter of productive, financial and tax efficiency, more and more French
companies organize themselves into groups of companies. One company, the parent
company, controls one or several companies, called the subsidiaries.
In 2007, there were 40.500 groups that employed more than 8 million people. Only 5%
of companies depend on a group. The 94 groups with more than 10.000 employees
represent 39% of the groups' workforce.
But big companies are not the only ones to adopt this group structure, small and
medium sized companies also organize themselves into groups. Indeed, mora than 95%
of the groups employ less than 500 employees : in this case we speak of microgroups.
With energy, the automotive industry is the sector in which the groups are the most
present : more than nine employees over ten are employed by a group. Other heavy
industrial sectors (goods equipment and intermediate goods), although less
concentrated, are also widely dominated by groups. The weight of the big groups is also
important in the consumer product industry or transport.
On the contrary, in education, health, social action, personal services, real estate and
construction, groups are not widespread.
Some of the groups operating in France are controlled by foreign capital. These foreign
groups employ nearly 2 million employees. Foreign group subsidiaries employ 14% of
the French workforce. Among foreign group subsidiaries located in France, 68% are
controlled by groups belonging to the European Union.
French law also knows the notion of an economic and social unit (in French, unité
économique et sociale or UES), which may be recognized pursuant to an agreement
with unions or pursuant to a court decision, between companies which, although they
are distinct from a legal standpoint, have identical or complementary activities, a
concentration of management and a community of workers.
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The UES was created by the Court of Cassation. This notion has been forged to respond
to fraudulent practices whereby an employer creates several legally separate companies
with less than 50 employees, or even fewer than 11 employees, in order to escape the
legal obligation to set up representation (representatives or work council)35.
1. Is there a definition of corporate group or group of companies in your labor
legal system?
A "group" is a group of companies belonging to legally distinct and independent legal
entities or natural persons whose activity is controlled by a so-called parent company
which, through one or more managers, holds on each of them a certain financial,
management and economic power.
According to article L233-3 of the French Commercial Code36, any person, physical or
moral, is considered as controlling another when:
- It holds, directly or indirectly, a fraction of the capital giving it a majority of the
voting rights in the general meetings of that company;
- It alone has the majority of the voting rights in that company in virtue of an
agreement concluded with other partners or shareholders and which is not contrary
to the interest of the company;
- It determines, by the voting rights at its disposal, the decisions in the general
meetings of that company;
35 www.insee.fr, rubrique Publica tions et services\Collections nationales\Insee Références
36 Article L233-3 Labor code.
I.- Toute personne , physique ou morale, est considérée, pour l'applica tion des sections 2 et 4 du présent
chapitre , comme en contrôlant une autre:
1° Lorsqu'elle détient directement ou indir ectement une fra ction du capita l lui conférant la majorité des
droits de vote dans les ass emblées générales de cette société ;
2° Lorsqu'elle dispose seule de la majorité des droits de vote dans cette société en vertu d'un a ccord
conclu avec d'autr es associés ou actionnaires et qui n'est pas contr aire à l'intér êt de la société ;
3° Lorsqu'elle détermine en fait, par les droits de vote dont elle dispose, les décisions dans les assemblées
généra les de cette société ;
4° Lorsqu'elle est associée ou actionnaire de cette société et dis pose du pouvoir de nommer ou de
révoquer la majorité des membres des orga nes d'administration, de direction ou de s urveillance de cette
société.
II.-Elle est pr ésumée exercer ce contrôle lorsqu'elle dispose directement ou indirectement, d'une fraction
des dr oits de vote supérieure à 40 % et qu'aucun a utre a ssocié ou actionna ire ne détient dir ectement ou
indirectement une fraction supérieur e à la sienne.
III.-Pour l'application des mêmes sections du présent cha pitre, deux ou plusieurs personnes agissant de
concert sont considérées comme en contrôlant conjointement une autre lorsqu'elles déter minent en fait
les décisions prises en ass emblée générale.
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