The rules for managing the Social and Economic Committee (CSE)

Since 1 January 2020, the CE (Comité d’Entreprise, or Works Council) has been replaced by the CSE (Comité Social et Économique, or Social and Economic Committee). The transition was made easier by the merger of several major players in workplace social dialogue and company life. Here are the main differences between the CE and the CSE, along with the rules for setting up and managing the Social and Economic Committee in your company.

The Works Council and the Social and Economic Committee

The Social and Economic Committee is a staff representation body whose members are elected by the company’s employees for a term of up to 4 years. It acts as an intermediary between management and employees. It is present in companies employing at least 11 staff. Below 50 employees, it remains optional and becomes mandatory above 50 employees.

The CSE brings together the former staff representation bodies:

• staff delegates;
• the works council;
• the health, safety and working conditions committee.

The Social and Economic Committee is not all that different from the CE, since it takes over its roles and responsibilities.

Which companies must set up a Social and Economic Committee?

The Social and Economic Committee must be set up in all companies with at least 11 employees that fall into the following categories:

• public administrative bodies employing staff under private-law contracts;
• public industrial and commercial bodies;
• private-law employers and their employees, regardless of the company’s legal form or activity (commercial companies, civil companies, associations).

At the end of the staff delegates’ term of office, if the company’s headcount has remained below 11 employees for at least 1 year, the CSE does not need to be renewed.

Rules governing the election of staff delegates

The election of staff delegates takes place every 4 years. The employer organises the vote within 3 months of informing employees. The vote is secret and takes place either by paper ballot in a sealed envelope or electronically.

Term of office

The term of office for Social and Economic Committee members is set at 4 years. However, it is possible to sign a collective agreement shortening the term to a period of between 2 and 4 years.

For companies with more than 50 employees, the number of consecutive terms is limited to 3. However, a collective agreement may allow for a higher number of consecutive terms.

Who can vote in CSE elections?

Voters must meet three conditions:

• be at least 16 years old;
• have full civil rights;
• be employed by the company and have at least 3 months’ seniority at the time of the first round of voting.

Who can stand as a candidate in CSE elections?

Candidates must meet four criteria:

• be at least 18 years old;
• have been employed by the company for more than 1 year;
• not have been sentenced to a penalty that bars them from voting and therefore from being elected;
• not be the spouse, civil partner, partner, ascendant, descendant, sibling, or relative to the same degree of the employer.

If you work for several companies at the same time, you may only stand in one election, in one company.

CSE composition

The CSE comprises the employer and a staff delegation made up of an equal number of regular members and alternates. Alternates step in to replace a regular member who is unable to attend a meeting.

For a company with between 11 and 24 employees, 1 regular member must be elected. Two are required for companies with 25 to 49 employees. The number then increases, up to 35 union delegates for a company with 10,000 employees.

In a company with 50 to 300 employees, the union delegate is automatically a member of the CSE. In companies with more than 300 employees, each representative trade union is entitled to appoint its own delegate to sit on the committee. In all companies with more than 50 employees, the occupational physician and the internal safety officer attend meetings dealing with safety, health and working conditions.

In all cases, regardless of headcount, a referent for combating sexual harassment must also be appointed from among the members of the Social and Economic Committee.

The missions of the Social and Economic Committee

The CSE’s responsibilities depend on the size of the company. Staff delegates act as intermediaries between employees and management. They relay individual or collective grievances concerning pay, applicable agreements and collective bargaining agreements within the company, as well as compliance with the Labour Code and other legal provisions concerning, among other things, social protection.

Staff delegates work on statistics relating to occupational illnesses and workplace accidents. Their communications must promote health, safety and working conditions within the company.

Members of the staff delegation are entitled to refer to the labour inspectorate any complaints and observations relating to the application of legal provisions that the CSE is responsible for overseeing.

For its part, management presents to the Social and Economic Committee the file detailing the prevention and protection measures planned in the DUERP: the Single Occupational Risk Assessment Document.

The Social and Economic Committee’s right to raise the alarm

The Social and Economic Committee has a right to raise the alarm that allows it to alert the employer on the following matters:

• when a serious and imminent danger is suspected;
• when a serious and imminent risk emerges concerning public health and the environment;
• in the event of an infringement of individual rights (moral harassment), physical or mental health, or individual freedoms (freedom of expression or opinion).

The CSE’s missions in a large company

In a company with more than 50 employees, the CSE’s missions are somewhat broader. Members are informed and consulted on matters relating to the organisation and management of the company:

• changes to the company’s legal and economic structure;
• working conditions: professional training and working hours, among others;
• the adoption of new technologies within the company;
• changes in headcount;
• adapting workstations to keep jobs for employees who are ill, injured or disabled, etc.

How the CSE operates and communicates

The Social and Economic Committee receives no budget until the company reaches 50 employees. However, the employer must provide certain practical resources, such as a meeting room and a noticeboard for sharing information.

Above 50 employees, the CSE’s operating budget amounts to 0.20% of gross payroll in companies with 50 to 1,999 employees, and 0.22% in companies with at least 2,000 employees.

Training for CSE members

Members of the Social and Economic Committee benefit from various training courses in the areas of safety, health and monitoring working conditions.

This training lasts 5 days for their first term and is shortened to 3 days if their term is renewed. Since the training is considered working time, the employee is paid as normal.

Training for CSE members can be funded by the employer or by the Opco (the skills operator).

Delegation hours

Regular members of the Social and Economic Committee each receive around ten hours of delegation time per month in companies with up to 50 employees. This time then increases depending on headcount. Time spent in CSE meetings is considered working time and paid as such.

Monthly CSE meetings

It is up to management to convene the members of the Social and Economic Committee at least once a month. If the employer cannot attend, they must arrange to be represented. Regular members who cannot attend are represented by their alternate.

Requests from CSE members must be submitted in writing and sent at least 2 working days before the meeting. The employer must provide written responses and distribute them within 6 working days following the meeting.

Exchanges between the employer and the Committee are recorded in a dedicated register. This register must be made available to:

• the labour inspectorate;
• all members of the Social and Economic Committee;
• the company’s employees, for 1 working day every 15 days, outside working hours.

Protection for members of the Social and Economic Committee

Members are employees protected against dismissal. This provision ensures that none of them is dismissed for reasons related to their duties as a staff representative. It thus guards against the risk of retaliation.