In Paris, a trade fair was held in mid-May, organized by Medef, the main employers’ union in France. The goal for the companies present: to attract as many young people as possible to train them, hire them, and overcome the current labor shortage, the need for which has increased with the upcoming arrival of the 2024 Olympics.
With nearly 5,000 offers of apprenticeship contracts, the Trades, Orientation and Work-Study Fair, pulled out all the stops on May 10, 2023, to attract as many young people as possible. The event is organized by the Mouvement des entreprises de France (Medef), the main employers’ union in France.
Alone or accompanied by a parent, students and high school students present themselves in turn to the stands that interest them, letters of motivation and curriculum vitae in hand. About fifty companies responded to the call, including companies specializing in construction, building or transport.
Apprenticeship or work-study is the format favored by employers looking for arms. With these types of contracts, young people divide their time between school and business, as explained by Tiphaine Perrichon, from the Ile-de-France Regional Public Works Federation: ” These are professions that still convey a lot of received ideas. We are open to everyone. Today, companies are reporting recruitment difficulties, so this is why they will rather favor apprenticeship or work-study courses to be able to support the training of people while retaining them and making them employees of the companies. . »
In certain sectors such as construction, the needs are urgent, indicates Monique Bemelmans, of the French Building Federation: “ Our 32 professions, such as mason or electrician, are in tension. We have an annual need for renewal and just to renew departures, we need to recruit 10,000 to 11,000 people every year. And just in Île-de-France! »
The Olympics heighten tensions around the workforce
Axelle, in her twenties, made the trip. She is in a master’s degree in management and sustainable development, and has just returned from an interview with a representative of the RATP, the transport network of the Paris region: “ I said to myself that for the RATP, which manages all the urban transport in Paris, the environmental issue must surely be crucial for them. I spoke about it with the lady earlier and she of course supported this side within the RATP “says the student, who assures us that we also spoke to her about the Olympic Games. ” RATP wants to modernize its network and make it accessible to as many people as possible. And they will also need a lot of people in terms of recruitment. For the year 2023, the RATP is looking for 6,600 people, in particular bus or metro drivers.
The Olympic Games have accentuated this need for manpower, explains Tiphaine Perrichon, of the Regional Federation of Public Works of Ile-de-France: “ The impact of the Olympic Games further reinforces this tension, since the scarcity of available labor is sometimes allocated to certain sites to the detriment of others. »
And this need for labor is here to stay, assures Monique Bemelmans to the French Building Federation : “ Even after the Olympic and Paralympic Games, there will be a strong need for manpower and the tension will continue. »
The other sector in great demand for the Olympic Games is that of private security, but no company in this sector was present at the show. However, the needs will be colossal, during the two weeks of the Olympics, in 2024.