In France, annual minimum wage adjustments are linked to the evolution of the CPI, as well as to the increase in the purchasing power of blue-collar workers’ basic hourly wage. The minimum wage adjustment takes place every January. It incorporates the change in the CPI over 12 months (November t-2 to November t-1).

The annual revision of the minimum wage also incorporates half the annual increase in the hourly basic rate of blue collar wages (from September t-2 to September t-1), resulting from a specific survey carried out quarterly by the Ministry of Labour.

France’s formula is:

∆ MWt = ∆ CPI Nov t-2/Nov t-1 + 0.50 * ∆ Blue collar hourly wage Sep t-2/Sep t-1

France’s minimum wage also has an automatic guarantee concerning the evolution of prices. This adjusts the minimum wage every time the price index increases by 2 per cent or more since the last adjustment.

In addition to this mathematical determination of minimum wage adjustments, France also has a discretionary component that can introduce an additional percentage to the final increase. Since 2009 a commission of independent experts recommends if there is space for an additional increase (coup de pouce), taking into account the economic context.