Insee Première · February 2026 · n° 2094

Civil service employment in 2024 Recruitment of contract staff once again supported the rise in civil service employment

At the end of 2024, 5.9 million employees were working in the French civil service: 32,800 more than the year before (+0.6%) a smaller increase than in 2023 (+1.1%). Employment rose by 0.8% in State civil service, by 0.3% in local civil service and by 0.5% in the hospital civil service.

The number of civil servants, including military personnel, was almost stable in 2024 (-0.1%). By contrast, the number of contract staff continued to increase: +2.6%, after +4.9% in 2023. For the first time, category A staff (highly skilled employees) outnumbered category C staff (low skilled workers).

The share of women in the civil service continued to grow and reached 64% (5 points more than twenty years earlier). 2023 pension reform increased the share of employees aged 50 or over.

In 2024, entries into civil service declined. Exits increased in the hospital and local government civil services.