They represented only 8% of workers in 1982, and now represent around 21.7% of people in the French labor market, according to the latest data dating from 2022. The number of executives has almost tripled over the last forty years in France, according to a “portrait of professions” published by INSEE, April 29.
At the same time, the cumulative share of farmers and workers decreased by almost half over the same period. Farmers, who represented 7.5% of employed people in 1982, will only represent less than 2% in 2022. The share of workers has also fallen continuously, a consequence of deindustrialization, from 29, 9% in 1982 to 18.9% in 2022, mainly due to a marked drop in the share of low-skilled workers among employed people.
More women graduates
As a reminder, an executive is an employee exercising a management, design or control function in a company, for which he has completed studies of varying lengths. This change in the number of executives is thus linked to “the rise in the level of qualifications and the tertiarisation of the economy”. Among executives, 54% have a qualification level between Bac + 2 and Bac + 5 and above, according to a report from the Association for the Employment of Executives. Their median salary is now around 50,000 euros per year.
In recent years, “two major phenomena have affected the labor supply: a sharp increase in the active population driven by its feminization and the soaring level of education of the workforce”, the latter phenomenon being correlated to the first, “since women are now more qualified than men”, indicated in a study published in 2019 four French economists. However, managers remain predominantly men: 64% in 2021 compared to 36% women, while among non-managerial professions, the male/female distribution is less wide, with 53% men and 47% women.
However, if France today has more students, the INSEE figures must be qualified since the category of executive itself has been broadened over time (one can today be considered an executive from ‘a bac + 2, in certain sectors). “We can debate the relevance of public statistics by socio-professional categories in France, for long-term longitudinal monitoring. Not only is it difficult to bring new professions into old categories, but professions have experienced profound transformations in “Two professions that seemed close forty years ago may have diverged while remaining in the same category, whether aggregated or detailed,” notes the notebook. “Work and employment” cited above. The main sectors where executives work are sales and marketing (22%), management and administration (17%), technical services and information (14% respectively). Furthermore, 94% are on permanent contracts.
Young people and the least qualified jobs
To a lesser extent, the share of people exercising an intermediate profession has also increased continuously since 1982 (+ 6 points), according to INSEE: “while the share of employees was 8 points above that of intermediate professions it 40 years ago, they are similar in 2022,” adds INSEE. Also, among people working as employees, three-quarters are women.
Another point of the study, if young people in training study longer than before, 18-24 year olds on the job market on the contrary occupy the least qualified positions. They represent 17% of low-skilled employees and 21% of low-skilled workers, compared to 10% of the entire employed population.