Gender equality agreement in the civil service will be signed but not implemented

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Everyone won except women. The memorandum of understanding on gender equality in the civil service will be signed on Friday, 30 November, but it will not be implemented. This is the funny epilogue to which ends the war of nerves initiated a few days ago between Olivier Dussopt and three unions of officials – the CGT, FO and Solidaires – who refuse to sign the draft text in time provided by the government.

Secretary of State Gérald Darmanin, Minister of Action and Public Accounts, always warned that he would not apply a minority agreement, considering that it was not a good signal to send in terms of social negotiation . However, CGT, FO and Solidaires represent 51% of civil servants. The agreement signed on October 24 will be signed with the six organizations out of the nine that are ready to do so. But it will not be applied until it is a majority.

Incongruous situation

This situation will make a first collateral victim. An amendment to the draft budget law for 2019, which begins its last straight in Parliament, can not be included: he planned to release funds to create 3,000 crèche places in three years. A dozen measures that the government planned to introduce in the draft law on the public service, early 2019, could also be the cost of this showdown.

The situation is incongruous. Because, basically, the draft agreement is more or less suitable for everyone, even if FO is much more reserved on the subject. The compromise reached after several weeks of negotiations between Olivier Dussopt and eight of the nine representative organizations of the public service aims to "To take a new step in the field of equality between women and men". Action plan, balanced appointments, fight against pay gaps between men and women … According to many stakeholders, the project is going in the right direction and relies on "On mandatory and binding mechanisms, which may give rise to financial penalties for non-compliance with the obligations laid down".

But the deadline of one month granted, at the request of the CGT, the unions to consult their base has proved insufficient, according to the three refractory. "Our teams did not have enough time to lead the democratic debate" on the protocol, justified Gaëlle Martinez, general delegate of Solidaires, on November 27th. The signature, scheduled for November 26, was postponed for one day, then for another three days. In vain, except improbable surprise.