Perceptions at work have never evolved so rapidly in our society. The accumulation of crises in recent years, from covid to Ukraine, passing through inflation and shortages, has profoundly transformed the expectations and actions of French workers.
The enthusiasm for teleworking, the aspiration to a more balanced life, the search for meaning… have already become strong signs, especially among younger employees. In short, work is losing its central position in the lives of our fellow citizens, a finding that is confirmed once again in a new study* by Ifop/LesMakers.fr.
A study that “points to a real distancing, with more and more active people saying they will work primarily for the money while doing ‘only what is necessary’ in the professional context.”
One in two employees intends to work “just what it takes”
Thus, 37% of French people say they are worried about “silent resignation” by remaining stricto sensu within the framework of their employment contract, refusing overtime, being called out of working hours and any task that does not correspond to their mission.
And 45% say they work “fairly”. A particularly strong “practice” among the youngest: 61% aged 18-24 and 71% aged 25-34. But this approach doesn’t really draw disapproval, with only 22% of respondents equating it with laziness.
Earning income is now the main goal of French employees. Almost half (45%) of those surveyed, including the 14% who strongly agree, only go to work for the salary they receive. A figure that has clearly increased since in 1993 only a third (33%) placed money at the top of their motivation.
Increasingly severe with the unemployed
It must be said that 54% of the French consider that work is above all a limitation rather than a source of fulfillment (46%). And 48% say they are “losers” when it comes to their career investment. A participation that almost doubled in three decades, underlines Ifop.
A sign that the value given to work has clearly evolved in recent years, 58% of French people today say that they would give up their professional activity if they received an income equal to what they receive today without having to work. In 2003, less than half (46%) of the people questioned by CSA were on this case.
At the same time, the French increasingly strict with the unemployed. 66%, especially from the right, but also from the left, believe that the unemployed could find work if they really wanted to. In 2010, just over half of respondents (53%) thought the same
Work, success, idleness: right or left values
The debate was opened by the green deputy Sandrine Rousseau who affirms without blinking that work is “still” a right-wing value. If the French are less affirmative (62% refuse to decide), the study shows that effort, merit and success are perceived as right-wing values (57, 61 and 73%), while assistantship, laziness and idleness are mostly associated with the left (74, 70 and 65%).
The right to be lazy collects precisely the assent of the citizens close to the left, but it is also approved in not insignificant proportions by the sympathizers of the right, for a total of 69%.
And when the leader of the communists, Fabien Roussel, believes that the left must defend work and not aid, he finds a favorable echo among 75% of those questioned.
*: Survey conducted from October 11 to 13 by IFOP for LesMakers.fr through a self-administered questionnaire among 2015 people over 18 years of age representative of the French population.
Source: BFM TV
