What is a PES?
The PSE or Employment Safeguard Plan is a rather cumbersome procedure whose purpose, as its name suggests, is to “avoid layoffs” or limit their number. Established by the law of social modernization of January 17, 2002, it is a legal device set up by article L 1233-61 of the Labor Code .
Mandatory measures include:
● A redeployment plan for those made redundant.
● The creation of new activities by the company.
● Training actions or validation of knowledge for employees.
● Measures to reduce and adjust employees’ working hours.
When can a Job Protection Plan be put in place?
When a company is in a difficult economic situation and its stability is compromised, the implementation of a PSE is often a necessary measure.
The PSE is compulsory for companies with more than 50 employees , if they provide for the redundancy of at least ten employees over a period of ten days.
To be able to set up an economic dismissal, the company must meet the following conditions:
● Implementation in the company of a new technology leading to the loss of the employee’s job.
● Cessation of activity of the company, except if this cessation of activity is due to the employer.
● Economic difficulties, ie significant change in at least one of these three parameters: orders or turnover, cash flow or gross operating surplus, another element that justifies economic difficulties.
● Need to safeguard the competitiveness of the company.
In this context, it is mandatory for the company to present a PSE plan, ie to implement all the actions necessary to maintain jobs.
The stakes of the PES
For the survival of the company, a good management of the PSE is necessary. Indeed, the challenge of the Job Protection Plan is above all to make changes to ensure the sustainability of the company . The PSE is based on a short-term solution to reduce costs.
The internal social climate can deteriorate and have a negative impact on the company’s activity. It is a delicate period which requires being attentive and reactive to avoid any social conflict.
The risks of the job protection plan
As part of a PSE, special attention must be paid to the people who remain in the company. The PSE can modify their working conditions, increase the workload or even generate stress.
A job safeguard plan always has significant consequences in terms of psychosocial risks .
It is therefore essential to carry out the PES carefully, in particular by calling on external professionals.
The 5 steps of a Job Protection Plan
The PSE is drawn up by the employer, in consultation with various bodies such as staff representatives, members of the works council and staff representatives.
A PSE generally proceeds as follows:
Step 1: Check that the redundancy project is covered by a job safeguard plan.
Step 2: Develop the draft ESP.
Step 3: Inform and consult staff representatives.
Step 4: Submit the PSE to the administration for control.
Step 5: Implementation of the Job Protection Plan.
The PES is sometimes subject to collective agreements which precisely regulate the measures to be put in place.
Once the plan has been validated by the various parties concerned, the Job Protection Plan must be sent to the staff representatives, to all the employees as well as to the DIRECCTE.
In the event of dispute of the plan by the staff representatives, it is the DIRECCTE which ensures the validity of the PSE. After this validation, the planned measures are put in place.
Finally, employees are notified by posting or any other internal communication tool.
Call on an Interim Manager to manage a PSE
The use of an interim manager is a solution that many companies favor today to carry out a PSE.
The PSE is indeed a complex and stressful process for employees. The human stakes of a PSE are obviously significant and risk undermining the motivation of employees.
In this context, an interim manager has its place. As a third party to the company, he brings an outside perspective and is not subject to internal pressures which can complicate the issues of the PSE.
The interim manager can assist the company in defining the PSE strategy at different levels:
● He takes part in the various meetings to present the PSE, he explains the situation and the issues to all the employees as well as to the staff representatives.
● He also intervenes during individual interviews with the employees concerned by the PSE.
● He exchanges with the employees, and helps them to identify the advantages of the redeployment project proposed to them.
● The interim manager also contributes to the drafting of the PSE.
● It also helps to define the conditions for a judicious reclassification consistent with the needs of the company. His excellent knowledge of the market can lead him to consider reclassifications internally (which are always to be preferred), or in other structures.
Our advice for choosing the right PSE interim manager
To carry out a PSE , an interim manager must possess a certain number of professional and personal skills:
● Control of HR processes.
● Managerial agility.
● Leadership.
● Ability to collaborate.
With its pool of more than 15,000 interim managers, Reactive Executive adapts to your needs. It is important for us to identify precisely the expectations of our customers, to put them in contact with a seasoned professional, able to carry out the Job Protection Plan in optimal conditions.
By using an interim management firm, a company can be sure of carrying out its PSE under the best possible conditions for its employees, while reducing the financial impact.
