The complete guide to mandatory workplace notices

All businesses, even the smallest ones, must respect employees’ right to information in the workplace. The rules defining mandatory workplace notices for businesses depend on the number of employees. By “notice,” we mean “dissemination of information,” since some notices can be transmitted through other means, particularly the company’s intranet site.

What are the general rules on mandatory workplace notices for businesses?

The rules on mandatory notices for businesses are set out in the French Labor Code. They apply to all businesses, regardless of headcount or industry. The goal is to inform employees of their rights within their company and to give them the contact details of certain organizations they can reach out to for various reasons (safety, the labor inspectorate if the law is not being applied, a reporting channel for harassment complaints, etc.). It is also about clarifying certain company rules, such as working hours, paid leave, smoking bans, weekly rest days, and so on.

Mandatory business notices fall into two categories: those that must be physically printed and posted within the company, and those that must be disseminated “by any means,” meaning they can be posted, but can also be shared via the company intranet, for example.

Mandatory notices vary depending on the number of employees

To find out which rules on mandatory notices apply to your specific situation, you need to refer to the company’s headcount. Indeed, the Labor Code divides businesses into three categories:

• 1 to 10 employees;
• 11 to 49 employees;
• more than 50 employees.

For the full list of mandatory notices for companies in each category, refer to the official government website summarizing the rules on mandatory workplace notices.

Notices, as well as information shared through other means, must be kept up to date. Employers should therefore review their notice boards and intranet communications every year.

The risks employers face if their notices are non-compliant

The first rule to follow regarding mandatory workplace notices concerns the physical location of the notice boards. They must be placed where work is carried out, in locations easily accessible to all employees. Large businesses divided into several distinct units on the same site must find a location that everyone can access. This rules out areas accessible only to certain categories of staff, controlled by security personnel, or requiring a badge system.

If the labor inspectorate finds that mandatory notices in your business are not being complied with, the employer faces severe penalties. These are calculated based on the number of pieces of information that are not displayed. The lightest penalty is €450, but for the most serious violations, aggravated by proven repeat offenses, Article L8114-1 of the Labor Code sets a penalty of up to 1 year in prison and a €37,500 fine for obstruction.

Setting up notice boards

A business can go through the rules set out by the Labor Code one by one, print them out, and post them. However, to avoid this tedious task, complete notice boards that comply with the law can be purchased online or in specialty shops.

These boards come in several formats. They cover all mandatory notices for businesses and leave space for sections that need to be customized:

• company working hours;
• the phone number of the relevant labor inspectorate;
• local occupational health services;
• the leave-booking period, 2 months before leave begins;
• the order of leave departures;
• spaces for posting union communications for each union branch within the company, etc.

What is the nature of mandatory workplace notices?

The information given to employees is considered important and mandatory. It covers an extremely wide range of topics:

• employees’ daily life within the company;
• work organization;
• risk prevention;
• relationships between employees;
• relationships between employees and their employer;
• safety rules;
• employee wellbeing;
• employee protection, etc.

In short, mandatory workplace notices guarantee employees better working conditions in terms of hygiene, safety, health, and rights protection. Protecting employees involves displaying the contact details of organizations that oversee the smooth running of company life, such as the labor inspectorate and occupational health services.

What’s new for mandatory business notices in 2022?

The rules are constantly evolving, which requires businesses to review their notices, as well as their other means of communication, every year. The two most recent updates concern the posting of internal regulations and the new whistleblower law.

Posting internal regulations

Since January 1, 2020, internal regulations must now be displayed in all establishments with more than 50 employees, in accordance with law no. 2019-486 of May 22, 2019, on business growth and transformation. Until the end of 2019, the threshold for this notice requirement was lower.

The amendment to Article 225-1 of the Criminal Code

The Waserman Law of March 21, 2022 amended the list of grounds for discrimination as of September 1, 2022, to include whistleblowers. This is recorded both in the Labor Code (Article L. 1132-1) and in the Criminal Code (Art. 225-1).

Businesses can no longer take disciplinary action or make a discriminatory decision against an employee based on their status as a whistleblower, facilitator, or person connected to a whistleblower.

Since Article 225-1 of the Criminal Code is one of the mandatory business notices and must be disseminated “by any means,” the company’s notice board must be updated accordingly.