A Look at the French Job Market & Searching for Work in France

If you are looking into moving overseas to live and work abroad in France then you might want to see what the job market looks like and what type of work opportunities might be available in the French job market. In France there are a high number of immigrants in the workforce, so you will not be alone as an expatriate working in a foreign country. In fact, there are around 850,000 non European Union immigrants in the French workforce and around 750,000 European Union immigrants in the French workforce.

In France you will notice that most of the workforce is made up of people working in the services sector. After the services sector the next majority is to be found in industry and finally you will find about five percent of the workforce in agriculture.

You will notice that there are a lot of mandated holidays in France. And there are also minimum wage constraints. While there is lower union membership in France that there was in the past, you will still see strikes in the public sector and the transport sector.

In France the work week is only 35 hours. It is mandatory only is some sectors and certain types of companies. That being said, it is pretty widespread.

When looking for a job in France the key is networking. Jobs can be found through newspaper and internet searches, but most are gotten through establishing relationships. There are two major agencies in France for employment. ANPE, or Agence Nationale pour l'Emploi, is the French national agency for employment. This agency specializes in manual labor and unskilled worker jobs. APEC, Agence pour l'Emploi de Cadres,or is the French national agency for employment specializing in jobs for professionals and executives. Each agency has multiple offices through out the country.

When you find a job that you want to apply to in France you can do so by telephone, fax or email. Typically most French companies like to get a copy of your curriculum vitae, or CV, along with a cover letter as application for an open job. Cover letters are extremely important when applying for a job in France.

When you are preparing your CV note that the French format might be different from that of your home country. For instance, the French list education first on the CV. The CV format can also vary by industry or job. You can get a standard CV template from the European Center for the Development of Vocational Training. Just remember to tailor it to the French model.