Informations Rapides · 28 August 2026 · n° 214

In Q2 2026, payroll employment was virtually stable (-0.1 %) Quarterly employment estimates – detailed figures - second quarter 2026

In Q2 2026, payroll employment was virtually stable (-0.1% that is -23,500 net job creations) after a stability in the previous quarter (0.0% that is +700 jobs). It was below its Q2 2025 level by 0.3% (that is -72,500 jobs) but still exceeded sharply its pre-sanitary crisis level (end of 2019) by 4.7% (that is +1.2 million additional jobs).

In Q2 2026, private payroll employment was virtually stable (-0.1%), after a stability in the previous quarter (that is -24,300 jobs after -7,500 jobs). Over a year, private payroll employment decreased by 0.4% (that is -80,900 jobs): it was the sixth consecutive quarter of year-on-year decline. However, it still exceeded sharply its pre-sanitary crisis level by 5.1% (that is +1.0 million jobs).

Public payroll employment was stable in Q2 2026 (0.0%, that is +800 jobs) after a virtually stability in the previous quarter (+0.1% that is -8,100 jobs). It was virtually stable from its Q2 2025 level (+0.1% that is +8,500 jobs) and still exceeded sharply its Q4 2019 level (+3.4% that is +0.2 million jobs). Over a year, public payroll employment increased for contract staff and decreased for civil servants.

In Q2 2026, temporary employment decreased again: -1.0% (that is -6,700 jobs), more significantly than in the previous quarter (-0.2% that is -1,200 jobs). Temporary employment was below its Q2 2025 level (-1.7% that is -12,400 jobs) and clearly below its pre-sanitary crisis level (-9.9% that is -76,500 jobs).

As a reminder, in this publication temporary workers are accounted for in the temporary employment sector which pays them (within market services), whichever sector they carry out their assignment (agriculture, industry, construction, market or non market services).

In Q2 2026, payroll employment in agriculture declined (-2.6% that is -8,400 jobs) particularly in vine-related activities, after a decrease in the previous quarter (-1.6% that is -5,200 jobs). Payroll employment in agriculture was below its Q2 2025 level by 3.8% (that is -12,300 jobs).

Industrial payroll employment (excluding temporary work) was virtually stable in Q2 2026 (-0.1% that is -2,600 jobs). It was slightly below its Q2 2025 level (-0.5%, that is -15,100 jobs) but still exceeded sharply its pre-sanitary crisis level by 1.7% (that is +55,100 jobs).

In construction, payroll employment (excluding temporary work) continued to decline: -0.4% (that is -6,700 jobs), after -0.5% in the previous quarter (that is -7,400 jobs). It remained below its Q2 2025 level (-1.4%, that is -21,600 jobs), but well above its pre-sanitary crisis level (+2.7% that is +40,300 jobs).

In Q2 2026, payroll employment in market services (excluding temporary work) was stable (0.0% that is -1,900 jobs), as in the previous quarter (0.0% that is that is +5,200 jobs). Close to its Q2 2025 level (-0.1%, that is -18,600 jobs), it exceeded still largely its pre-sanitary crisis level (+7.1%, that is +0.8 million jobs). In market services, excluding temporary work, payroll employment decreased slightly in information and communication (-0.4% that is -3,400 jobs) and in other service activities (-0.3% that is -3,600 jobs), while it increased, however, in accommodation and food service activities (+0.3%, that is +4,400 jobs).

In Q2 2026, payroll employment in non-market services was stable (0.0% that is +2,800 jobs) after a slightly increase by 0.2% in the previous quarter (that is +13,100 jobs). By sector of activity, payroll employment in non-market services increased particularly in human health activities (+4,600 jobs), and decreased very slightly in general government (-2,500 jobs). Payroll employment in non-market services was virtually stable over a year (+0.1% that is +7,600 jobs) and exceeded largely its pre-sanitary crisis level by 4.0% (that is +0.3 million jobs).

In the private sector, in Q2 2026 permanent contracts declined slightly over a quarter (-0.1%), as over a year (-0.2%) and was still clearly above its pre-sanitary crisis level by 5.1%. Fixed term contracts (excluding work-study) decreased over the quarter (-0.2%), increased slightly over a year (+0.5%) and remaining well below its pre-sanitary crisis level (-7.2%) Work-study contracts declined slightly over the quarter (-0.6%) and clearly over a year (-4.7%, that is -49,200 jobs). This decrease only partially eroded the gains from previous years: work-study contracts remained up by 56.4% compared to its level at the end of 2019 (+358,000 jobs)

In Q2 2026, private payroll employment declined again for people aged 15-29 years old (-0.3%), bringing the year-to-year decline to 1.4%, due notably to the fall in work study contracts. Private payroll employment decreased also for people aged 30-54 years old: -0.3% over the quarter and -1.0% over a year. However private payroll employment increased again strongly for people aged 55 years old and more: +0.6% over the quarter, bringing the year-to-year increase to 2.7%.

Finally, the respective trends for women and men were virtually stable over the quarter (-0.1% for both) and decreased slightly over the year (-0.3% and -0.4%, respectively).

In Q2 2026, non-salaried employment rose again (+0.9%, that is +33,500 jobs over a quarter), with a sharp increase over the year of 3.4% (that is +119,500 jobs). Considering payroll employment in Q2 2026, employment (payroll and non-salaried) was stable (0.0%, that is +10,000 jobs) over a quarter and increased slightly over a year (+0.2% +47,000 jobs).

Compared to the flash estimate published on 30 July 2026, the quarterly change in payroll employment in the private sector alone in Q2 2026 has been confirmed at -0.1% (revision of -5,000 jobs).

Compared to the employment detailed estimate published on 29 May 2026, the quarterly change in payroll employment (private and public) in Q1 2026 has been confirmed at 0.0% (revision of +5,600 jobs).

Finally, the quarterly change in non-salaried employment in Q1 2026 has been revised upward by 0.4 percentage points (revision of +15,400 jobs). The initial estimate of non-salaried employment for a given quarter is an experimental estimate and may be subject to further revision.