Medals for going to work – and raising (good) children – in France
To qualify you must be a salaried employee of a French company but you do not have to be a national
The médaille de la famille (left) and médaille d’honneur du travail
Monnaie de Paris
In France, you can be awarded medals by the state for going to work – and for raising children.
The médaille d’honneur du travail recognises long service in a private-sector company, special initiatives taken at work, or exceptional efforts to improve professional qualifications.
To qualify, you must be a salaried employee of a French company; you do not have to be French yourself.
Those who work in a sector with its own medal award system, for example fonctionnaires (civil servants), or civilian employees of the police or gendarmerie, are excluded.
The number of sectors which have their own state medals is surprisingly large, and includes tourism, farming, fishing, youth work, sports, and aeronautics, among others.
If the médaille d’honneur du travail is awarded for long service, breaks in work for parental leave and military service are included within that period, as is study leave to obtain qualifications.
People who are classed as mutilés du travail – suffering at least 50% incapacity through an accident at work, such as the loss of a limb in machinery – and people who qualify for early retirement because of the nature of their work, can be awarded medals without a full count of years.
For workers with 20 years’ service, whether in the same company or across several employers, a silver medal is awarded. A vermeil (gold-plated) medal is awarded for 30 years, a gold medal for 35 years and an extra large gold medal for 40 years.
The medals are worn on a blue, white and red ribbon. A rosette is added to the ribbon for 30 years’ service, and a gold wreath for 35 and 40 years’ service. Medals can be engraved with the recipient’s name and their employer.
In larger companies, requests for medals are usually made by the firm on behalf of the worker, though workers can also nominate themselves.
The request is made online, attaching an identity document, an attestation from the employer confirming the period of time in employment or exceptional services rendered, and an attestation of military service or status as mutilé du travail if applicable.
Lists of medal recipients are published twice a year in the national honours promotions of January 1 and July 14.
Most of the medals are made by the state mint, the Monnaie de Paris, and recipients or their employers must order and pay for them. Prices start at €70 for a silver medal (20 years’ service) and rise to €1,590 for the large, solid gold medal (40 years).
The médaille de la famille, meanwhile, is awarded to parents who have raised at least four children to the age of 16, in recognition of their dedication to building a stable and responsible family life.
Other people who qualify include those who have raised, on their own for two years at least, their brothers or sisters after the death of parents; those who have raised an orphan with whom they have a family link for two years; any war widow or widower who has raised on their own at least three children; or a broader category for “any person who has done remarkable work in the family domain”.
Applications are usually made by the would-be recipient, although other people can make the request on their behalf.
The procedure involves filling out a form (Cerfa 15319) and taking it to the mairie with an identity document, a copy of the parent’s criminal record (extrait du casier judiciaire), copies of the children’s birth certificates or other affiliation documents, the children’s school certificates, copies of court judgements if there has been a divorce, and attestations from people or organisations who think the person deserves the medal.
A decision on whether to award the medal is made by the prefect of the department.
The recipient can buy the bronze medal, set on a red and green ribbon, from the Monnaie de Paris for €39. The reverse of the medal leaves space for the name of the recipient and their children to be engraved if they wish.
There is sometimes a financial element to the medals, though this is discretionary. Some French companies offer bonuses alongside it, while in at least one department – Nord – the médaille de la famille entitles recipients to apply for a one-off prime from the Caisse des allocations familiales (CAF).
