From a strictly legal point of view, remuneration, which serves to remunerate work performance, constitutes one of the essential elements of the employment contract. In practice, setting the salary allows the entrepreneur to control the budget dedicated to the position to be filled. It’s useful for writing a job posting that gives candidates an overview of the company’s financial prospects.
Salary components
Very often the salary is made up of various elements. First of all there is the basic salary, which corresponds to a stable salary, in exchange for the work performed. This basic salary can be calculated on a lump sum, time, piece rate basis, etc.
Then comes the wage subsidies that are added to it. They take the most diverse forms: bonuses, tips, mutual insurance, restaurant vouchers, various advantages, etc. Their payment is mandatory when they appear in the employment contract or in the collective agreement concerned. They can have a considerable impact on your total compensation and therefore should not be overlooked.
Salary amount
The amount of the basic salary is set by mutual agreement between the employer and the employee. However, he must comply with the minimum growth wage (SMIC), the applicable collective agreement and the provisions relating to overtime. On 1 May 2023, the minimum wage reached 1,747.20 euros gross per month, or 1,383.08 euros net for 35 hours a week. The SMIC applies to all employees even if the employment contract provides for remuneration on a commission basis. The only exception: sales representatives whose working hours cannot be controlled. We also point out the existence of specific rules for some professional categories such as hotel, bar and restaurant staff, apprentices, young workers, etc.
Respect for the collective agreement
The Labor Code regulates the employee-employer relationship. It may eventually be complemented by agreements negotiated and ratified by trade unions and employers. The collective agreement is a legislative text that defines the employment and working conditions of employees. It is the result of negotiations between organizations representing employees and employers. It has a professional or territorial applicability. From a wage point of view, the collective agreement may provide for a more favorable guaranteed minimum wage than the SMIC for a given job. Under this agreement, the employer must comply with the amount of this minimum wage.
Comment identifier the applicable collective agreement ? By consulting the Légifrance website. This identification may result in particular from the economic activity carried out by the company. In this regard, the APE code assigned by the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) at the time the company was created can be very instructive.
How to know if its application is mandatory?
An employer must only implement the provisions of a collective agreement if he is a signatory or adherent to it. However, even if these two conditions are not met, he may still be required to comply with the collective agreement if its application is extended. It is then imposed on all companies in the professional or territorial sector concerned. Same scenario if its application has been extended. It then applies to all companies in the area or sector of activity affected by this extension.
Compliance with the applicable provisions on overtime work
Overtime corresponds to the hours worked beyond the statutory working hours. This is 35 hours per week for all employees. However, there are specific rules for certain professional categories and certain sectors of activity.
The case of overtime
Labor law provides a “annual overtime fee” which corresponds to an overtime volume of work. These can be carried out every year by an employee without prior authorization from the labor inspectorate. Limited, the number of overtime hours is equal to a maximum of 220 hours per employee and per year since the decree of 21 December 2004 relating to the establishment of the annual overtime quota. The agreement or collective agreement applicable to the company may provide for a lower or higher overtime quota than established by law.
Overtime entitles you to a wage increase of more than 10%. It is established by the collective agreement. In the absence of an agreement, the following rates apply: 25% on 36th at the 43rd hour and 50% beyond the 43rdth Now. Under certain conditions, overtime pay can be replaced by compensatory rest.
Maximum daily and weekly durations
The employer must also comply with the statutory daily and weekly working hours. In the absence of derogations and special provisions, a working day may not exceed 10 hours and a working week may not exceed 48 hours or 44 hours in any twelve consecutive working week period. What is compulsory compensatory rest? This is the rest that must be recognized to the employee whose overtime worked exceeds a certain threshold.
