The bill on the sharing of corporate value definitively adopted

On November 22, 2023, the French National Assembly voted definitively on the bill transposing the national interprofessional agreement on the sharing of value within the company.

The bill faithfully transposes the national interprofessional agreement (ANI) on the sharing of corporate value, concluded in February 2023 between trade unions and employers.

Two main measures will be implemented on an experimental basis for five years, aimed at developing value sharing in SMEs:

• Companies with fewer than 50 employees may voluntarily set up a branch or company profit-sharing scheme that may be less favorable than the legal formula. Professional branches will have to open negotiations on this subject before June 30, 2024. At present, overriding profit-sharing agreements must guarantee benefits at least equivalent to the legal formula.
• From January 1, 2025, companies with 11 to 49 employees will have to set up at least one value-sharing scheme if they are profitable (net taxable profit of at least 1% of sales for three consecutive financial years). Until now, only companies with at least 50 employees were required to do so.

The law also facilitates the use of the value-sharing bonus (PPV): companies will be able to distribute it twice a year, up to the exemption ceilings (3,000 euros or 6,000 euros). It can be invested in an employee savings plan. In companies with fewer than 50 employees, this bonus will remain exempt from tax and social security contributions, as well as from income tax for employees earning less than three Smic until December 31, 2026.

In addition, the text introduces a new obligation for companies with more than 50 employees, which will have to conduct negotiations in the event of exceptional profits. Taking profits into account may lead to an additional profit-sharing or incentive scheme, or to a new discussion on a profit-sharing scheme. Companies already covered by a profit-sharing or incentive agreement at the time of publication of the law will have to enter into negotiations by June 30, 2024 on the definition of their exceptional profit and how it will be shared with employees.

Finally, a new optional scheme known as the “plan de partage de la valorisation de l’entreprise” can be set up for three years for employees with at least one year’s seniority.