Remote working is ‘here to stay’ in France

Remote working (télétravail) has become embedded in French life and is unlikely to be  phased out any time soon, an expert claims.

Employers allowed greater flexibility to work from home during Covid lockdowns, and the option has largely been maintained in French workplaces in the years since.

Elsewhere, US President Donald Trump banned federal workers from homeworking during his first days in office, and Amazon has also ordered staff back into the office.

“There is no way that télétravail or visio is going to go away in France,” said Alexandre des Isnards, author of La visio m’a tuer. 

“It now has the status of a droit acquis (acquired right).

“I carried out what was essentially anthropology research for the book and it was obvious that remote working is now here to stay for any job which does not involve a physical presence.

“Even when people return to work, or are forced to return to work, they continue using visio to talk to people about work – even when those people are just on a different floor in the building!”

Read more: Micro-entrepreneur status: Pros and cons of self-employment in France

WFH pros and cons 

He said the change was generally good news for independent workers, many of whom had been using télétravail for years before Covid lockdowns made them normal.

“They find now that relations with the companies employing them are often better because the salaried workers use the same tools.

“And for creative workers, such as graphic artists, who found working in open-plan offices a kind of hell, being able to work from home is wonderful.”

French managers have largely resisted formal calls for staff to return to their desks, he said, possibly because they also enjoy the benefits of more days spent working from home.

“But they worry there is a real problem in getting people united to a common purpose and building the sort of team spirit and loyalty to the firm that there used to be,” Mr des Isnards said.

Analysis of management and union rep meetings also threw up crucial differences between those that were held in real life prior to Covid, and online meetings.

“There were fewer off-the-cuff remarks and spontaneous interventions when the meetings had an online element,” he said.

“The meetings were more fluid.”

For workers, the widespread use of visio has also had an effect on personal lives.

“When there are two people working from home in the same house, people see a different side to their partners, the way they work, which can be a bit of a shock,” he said.

“It is often better for one person to go and work outside the house, rather than have two people working together.”

Read more: Can France’s prime d’activité benefit boost income of self-employed?

Cultural shift in working practices

The shift has also meant that children are much more exposed to their parents’ work than before, to the extent that visio toys – including play headsets, telephones and computers – have entered toy shops.

“When I was a child I had no idea what my dad did,” said Mr des Isnards.

“He left every day to earn his salary, and that was it. It was only years later that I found out his job.

“Now kids come back from school and see their mums and dads at work, and inevitably look and listen. I have been in visio conferences at 18:00 when children come back from school and every time they come on camera to say hello.”

Another effect on workers, especially those who had previously only been in offices, is that they find it difficult to separate work and leisure.

“It may sound cool to go on a surfing break, while working remotely, but in practice it means for some that while they are surfing they are thinking about work.

“It will take time for the huge visio change to be fully absorbed.”