Informations Rapides · 26 March 2024 · n° 76

In Q4 2023, payroll employment was almost stable in most regions Localized employment and unemployment rates (by region and department) - fourth quarter 2023

Between the end of September 2023 and the end of December 2023, payroll employment in France as a whole (excluding Mayotte) was stable (0.0% after +0.2%). Temporary employment fell for the fourth consecutive quarter (‑1.7%), and reached a lower level than before the health crisis.

At regional level, payroll employment was almost stable (between ‑0.1% and +0.1%) in two-thirds of the regions. It increased by between 0.2% and 0.3% in Bretagne, Guadeloupe and Grand Est, and by 0.9% in Guyane. Lastly, it decreased in two regions: Martinique (‑0.7%) and Corse (‑0.4%).

The situation is more varied at departmental level: the variations between departments in the same region can be very different. This was the case, for example, in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, where payroll employment in Côte-d'Or was more dynamic (+0.4%) than in the other departments of the region, particularly Nièvre (‑0.4%). This was also the case in Île-de-France, where payroll employment rose in Val-d'Oise (+0.4%) and fell in Seine-Saint-Denis (‑0.4%). In Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, where payroll employment was almost stable, it increased by 0.8% in Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, the largest increase of any department in mainland France.

Overall, payroll employment was almost stable in the fourth quarter of 2023 in less than half (43) of the departments. It rose from 0.2% to 0.3% in 22 departments, and by at least 0.4% in 14 departments. Conversely, it fell in 21 departments, particularly in Martinique (‑0.7%) and Haute-Corse (‑0.5%).

At the national level, in Q4 2023, total payroll employment was 0.6% higher than in Q4 2022.

Payroll employment was above its level of one year earlier (by at least 0.2%) in all regions except in the North-East quarter and in Corse, where it was almost stable. In five regions, payroll employment increased slightly (from +0.2% to +0.5%), particularly in Martinique (+0.2%). Over one year, payroll employment increased by between 0.6% and 0.9% in six regions, and was well above its level of a year earlier in Bretagne (+1.2%) and Guyane (+2.9%).

At the end of December 2023, payroll employment was higher than a year earlier in 60 of the 100 departments (excluding Mayotte). Conversely, payroll employment was below its December 2022 level in 22 departments, with the sharpest decline in Gers (‑1.1%). Lastly, payroll employment was almost stable (between ‑0.1% and +0.1%) in 18 departments.

As in the case of quarterly trends, situations can vary widely between departments within the same region. In the North-East quarter, the most dynamic departments were Côte-d'Or, Doubs, Somme and Marne, while most of the other departments in these regions experienced a fall in payroll employment.

Among the regions where payroll employment increased over one year faster than the national average, some have homogeneous departmental trends. This is the case in Pays de la Loire and Bretagne, where employment increased faster than the national average in all departments except Sarthe. In Bretagne, employment trends were particularly dynamic in all four departments, with increases ranging from +0.7% in Morbihan to +1.8% in Ille-et-Vilaine.

At departmental level, payroll employment increased the most over one year in Haute-Garonne (+1.7%) and, conversely, fell the most sharply in the Gers (-1.1%).

Nationwide (excluding Mayotte), the unemployment rate was stable at 7.5% in Q4 2023. Compared with its level a year earlier, it was up by 0.4 points.

Between Q4 2022 and Q4 2023, the unemployment rate increased in all regions except Guadeloupe and Martinique, where it was almost stable (+0.1 points). The rise was below the national level in four regions. The unemployment rate increased at the same rate as at national level in almost half the regions. Lastly, the unemployment rate rose faster than the national average in four regions: Normandie (+0.5 points), Hauts-de-France (+0.6 points), La Réunion (+1.6 points) and Guyane (+5.6 points).

The unemployment rate was almost stable in 14 departments, and was up in all the others. It rose slightly less than at national level in a third of departments, and at the same rate in a quarter of departments. It rose by more than the national level in 30 departments, with the biggest rise in metropolitan France in the Pyrénées Orientales (+0.8 points).

In the fourth quarter of 2023, the unemployment rate was higher than at the national level (7.5%) in three regions in metropolitan France: Hauts-de-France (9.3%), Occitanie (8.9%) and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (8.2%). In the French overseas regions, it was higher, ranging from 10.3% in Martinique to 19.4% in Guadeloupe. Conversely, the unemployment rate was the lowest in Pays de la Loire (5.9%) and Bretagne (6.1%). In these two regions, unemployment rates were low in all departments. By contrast, in Île-de-France, where the unemployment rate was lower than the national level (7.2%), it was low in Paris (5.9%) and Hauts-de-Seine (6.1%) but higher in Seine-Saint-Denis (10.6%). The situation was also very mixed in Occitanie, with the second lowest rate in France in Lozère (4.7%) and the highest in mainland France in Pyrénées-Orientales (12.4%).