Far right publish details on how they would prioritise French nationals for jobs

French nationals would be prioritised for all jobs in France under a Rassemblement National (RN) government, the far-right party has confirmed. 

It is one of several measures aimed at providing a national ‘priority’ to French citizens and businesses outlined in the party’s new economic pamphlet, which was sent to businesses across the country earlier this month. 

Plans include nationality being a mandatory criteria for employers to review when hiring a candidate, but the party states “foreigners with rare skills that are necessary for the prosperity of the French economy,” would not be prevented from being employed. 

The RN would “guarantee simplicity and efficiency to company directors for any justified request to hire a foreign national (to be) legally employed on the basis of his or her skills.”

The policy is promoted as a way to reduce unemployment in France, as well as increase wages, by preventing non-French workers from accepting less pay for a position. 

Companies obliged to hire French nationals first

National preference – the automatic placing of French people before citizens of other nationalities – has been a cornerstone of the far-right for a number of years. 

In its campaign for the 2024 legislative elections, the RN said it would apply national preference in areas such as housing and welfare, with French citizens automatically placed at the top of lists. 

This would work similarly with the labour market – “It will be necessary to include nationality among the criteria for choosing a candidate,” the RN states.

Companies would be obliged to give preference to a French candidate. For example if two candidates with the same qualifications applied, but one was from France and one was not, the company would be obliged to hire the French applicant. 

“For equal skills, the employer will be obliged to recruit the Frenchman rather than the foreigner,” said RN MP Jean-Philippe Tanguy, who wrote the pamphlet, as reported by Le Monde.

French citizens who feel they should have been given a job that was instead handed to a foreign citizen will be able to inform the authorities, who will look into the matter.

“The administration will not investigate every recruitment… But people will be able to take legal action for discrimination if they feel that a foreigner has been unfairly recruited in their place,” Mr Tanguy added.

The RN states in its pamphlet that “the nationality rule already applies to a large part of the civil service,” in France, and would simply be applied more widely. 

The party made headlines earlier this year over its plans to prevent dual-citizens from holding certain government positions.

Read more: Dual nationals banned from some French jobs under far-right plans

Economic plans outlined by far-right

Elsewhere, rules on national preference will see the state and publicly-owned infrastructure – such as hospitals – be pushed towards purchasing goods and services from French suppliers, where available.

“The location of a company's activity on national territory will have to be one of the selection criteria for any order placed,” the RN says.

The full 35-page pamphlet – a reworking of economic plans outlined during Marine Le Pen’s 2022 presidential campaign – can be found here. 

It outlines a number of other economic policies from the party, including a reindustrialisation of France, and the end of income taxes for French citizens under 30.

It comes as the party looks to enter ‘permanent campaign’ mode after its disappointing result in the legislative elections, hoping to keep the momentum of its earlier victory in the European Elections this June. 

Read more: French far-right leader: July election was ‘personal defeat but collective victory’