What is a collective performance agreement?
Verified 06 February 2026 - Public Service / (Prime Minister)
Employers who wish to adapt their company to market developments can negotiate and conclude a collective performance agreement (CPA). This collective agreement makes it possible to adjust working hours, remuneration and conditions for professional or geographical mobility within the company. There is no staffing requirement to negotiate a CPA. We're taking stock of the regulations.
A collective performance agreement (CPA) is a collective agreement which allows measures to be negotiated exclusively in the 3 following areas :
- Adjustment of working hours
- Adjustment of remuneration (possibly downward)
- Determination of the conditions for occupational or geographical mobility within the company.
Please note
Adjustments to working hours or pay must be made in compliance with legal provisions or conventional (compliance with maximum working hours, Smic: titleContent and hierarchical conventional minimum wages, for example).
The Collective Performance Agreement (CPA) is entered into to meet the operational requirements of the company or with a view to preserve or develop employment..
It may be set up, for example, in the following cases:
- The need for the employer to redeploy staff to the company's production sites. The CPA may provide geographical mobility employees.
- Sustainable growth of activity in the company. The CPA may provide for a increase in working time per week beyond 35 hours.
- Streamlining staff management by harmonizing remuneration rules. The CPA may provide for a change in compensation structure (basic salary, bonus of 13e months for example).
Please note
In order to set up a CPA, the company not the obligation to have economic difficulties.
All the companies may conclude and negotiate a CPA. There's no staffing requirement.
When there is at least one shop steward in the company, the employer must negotiate the CPA with the union representative(s).
In the absence of a shop steward, the employer has several options to negotiate the CPA.
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Presence of at least one shop steward
The validity of the agreement depends on the audience of the trade union(s) signing the agreement, i.e. the number of votes obtained by the trade union(s) on the occasion of the 1ster round of the last elections of incumbents to the CSE: titleContent :
Trade union organizations that won more than 50% of the votes cast in the last CSE incumbent elections
The agreement is valid it is signed by one or more representative trade union organizations having collected more than 50% of the votes cast on 1er round of the last elections of incumbents to the CSE: titleContent.
Trade union organizations that won more than 30% of the votes cast in the last CSE incumbent elections
The agreement may be signed by one or more representative trade union organizations having collected more than 30% votes expressed on 1er round of the last elections of incumbents to the CSE: titleContent.
In this case, employees must be consulted by referendum.
The agreement is validated if it gets more than 50% of the votes cast by employees.
Other
The options for negotiating and concluding a collective performance agreement vary depending on the company's workforce and whether or not a CSE: titleContent in it:
Company with less than 11 employees
The employer may propose the draft collective performance agreement to the employees.
The employer must ask the employees about this draft agreement.
The agreement is validated if approved by more than 66.66% employees.
Company of 11 to 20 employees
The procedures are different when the company has a CSE or not:
Company with a CSE
Where there is a CSE: titleContent in the company, the employer has 2 possibilities to negotiate a collective performance agreement.
1re possibility: Negotiation with one or more full CSE members
The employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more members holders from the CSE.
The agreement shall be validated if signed by members of CSE representing more than 50% of the votes cast on 1er round of the last elections of CSE incumbents.
2e possibility: Negotiation with an employee mandated by a trade union organization
The employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more employees mandated by one or more representative trade union organizations.
The trade union organization(s) must be representative in the industry.
In the absence of representative trade union organizations in the sector, trade union organizations must be representative at national and inter-branch level.
The same trade union organization may mandate only one employee.
The agreement shall be signed with the authorized employee(s).
In this case the employees of the company must be consulted by referendum.
The agreement is validated if it gets more than 50% of the votes cast by employees.
Company without CSE
Where there is no CSE: titleContent in the company, the employer has 2 possibilities to negotiate a collective performance agreement.
1re possibility: Consultation of company employees
The employer may propose the draft collective performance agreement to the employees.
The employer must ask the employees about this draft agreement.
The agreement is validated if approved by more than 66.66% employees.
2nde possibility: Negotiation with an employee mandated by a trade union organization
The employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more employees mandated by one or more representative trade union organizations.
The trade union organization(s) must be representative in the industry.
In the absence of representative trade union organizations in the sector, trade union organizations must be representative at national and inter-branch level.
The same trade union organization may mandate only one employee.
In this case the employees of the company must be consulted by referendum.
The agreement is validated if it gets more than 50% the votes cast by employees.
Company of 21 to 49 employees
The procedures are different when the company has a CSE or not:
Company with a CSE
Where there is a CSE: titleContent in the company, the employer has 2 possibilities to negotiate a collective performance agreement.
1re possibility: Negotiation with one or more full CSE members
The employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more members holders from the CSE.
The agreement is validated if signed by CSE members representing more than 50% of the votes cast on 1er round of the last elections of the incumbents to the CSE.
2nde possibility: Negotiation with an employee mandated by a trade union organization
The employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more employees mandated by one or more representative trade union organizations.
The trade union organization(s) must be representative in the industry.
In the absence of representative trade union organizations in the sector, trade union organizations must be representative at national and inter-branch level.
The same trade union organization may mandate only one employee.
In this case the employees of the company must be consulted by referendum.
The agreement is validated if it gets more than 50% the votes cast by employees.
Company without CSE
The employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more employees mandated by one or more representative trade union organizations.
The trade union organization(s) must be representative in the industry.
In the absence of representative trade union organizations in the sector, trade union organizations must be representative at national and inter-branch level.
The same trade union organization may mandate only one employee.
In this case the employees of the company must be consulted by referendum.
The agreement is validated if it gets more than 50% the votes cast by employees.
Company of 50 or more employees
The employer must follow the following procedure.
Priority 1
The employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more members of the CSE: titleContent mandated by one or more representative trade union organizations.
The trade union organization(s) must be representative in the industry.
In the absence of representative trade union organizations in the sector, trade union organizations must be representative at national and inter-branch level.
The same trade union organization may mandate only one employee.
In this case the employees of the company must be consulted by referendum.
The agreement is validated if it gets more than 50% the votes cast by employees.
Priority 2
In the absence of members of the CSE: titleContent mandated through an employee organization, the employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more regular members of CSE no mandated.
The agreement is validated if signed by CSE members representing more than 50% of the votes cast on 1er round of the last elections of the incumbents to the CSE.
Priority 3
In the absence of an elected official willing to negotiate In an agreement, the employer may negotiate and enter into an agreement with one or more employees mandated by one or more representative trade union organizations.
The trade union organization(s) must be representative in the industry.
In the absence of representative trade union organizations in the sector, trade union organizations must be representative at national and inter-branch level.
The same trade union organization may mandate only one employee.
In this case the employees of the company must be consulted by referendum.
The agreement is validated if it gets more than 50% the votes cast by employees.
Please note
In companies with 50 or more employees, the CSE may appoint a public accountant to provide any analysis that may be useful to the trade union organizations in preparing the collective performance agreement.
There is no mandatory clause in a collective performance agreement.
The agreement right however define in its preamble its objectives. It may specify the following:
- Conditions under which employee directors and corporate officers and shareholders make efforts proportionate to those required of employees (this may, for example, involve a reduction in the remuneration of employee directors and/or a reduction in dividends paid to shareholders)
- The way in which employees' professional and personal and family lives are reconciled
- Support for employees by offering them, for example, training actions, and the possibility of paying sums on the Personal Training Account (PTA) above the minimum amount
- Means of informing employees about its application and monitoring throughout its duration
- Examination of the situation of employees at the end of the agreement.
The collective performance agreement must be filed on the digital platform TeleChords :
TeleAgreements - company Collective Agreement Filing Service
The employer shall inform each employee of the existence and content of this agreement.
It also informs the employee of the possibility to accept or refuse the implementation of this agreement.
This information is done by any means conferring a certain and precise date (registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, hand-delivered letter against signature for example).
The employee has 1 month to publicize its refusal in writing to the employer.
In the absence of refusal notified in writing within this period of 1 month, the agreement applies to the employee.
When the employee accepted, the collective performance agreement shall replace automatically the contrary and incompatible clauses provided for in the employee's employment contract. In this case, the employer does not establishendorsement to the employment contract.
Example :
In the employment contract of the employee, a clause provides for the payment of overtime plus 25%. The collective performance agreement may reduce the overtime mark-up rate to 10%. If the employee accepts the application of this agreement, the overtime will be increased to 10%.
When the employee refuses the application of the collective performance agreement, therefore the modification of his employment contract, the employer may dismiss him. In this case, the reason for dismissal is based on a specific reason that represents a real and serious cause.
The employee is not dismissed for economic reasons.
The employer must commit the procedure for dismissal on personal grounds within 2 months of the employee's refusal.
The employer must apply to the labor inspector for permission to dismiss a protected employee.
FYI
The employee's refusal does not lead to a breakdown automatic the employment contract. The employer may also decide not to dismiss the employee. The employment contract normally continues without applying the collective performance agreement.
Severance pay
The employee receives a severance pay if he fulfills the conditions allowing him to benefit from it.
Severance pay
The employee must in principle give notice. It can be dispensed with.
Compensation for this notice differs depending on whether the employee gives the notice, whether the employer exempts the employee from giving it or whether the employee requests to be exempted:
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The employee makes his notice
The employee receives a notice allowance corresponding to his usual salary.
The employee is exempted from notice by the employer
The employee does not work. The employer pays him a compensation for notice the salary he would have received had he worked during that period.
The employee asks the employer not to give notice
If the employer agrees, the employee does not work. He does not receive compensation in lieu of notice.
Vacation Pay
The employee receives a Compensatory allowance for paid leave if he fulfills the conditions allowing him to benefit from it.
Personal Training Account (CPF) Overflow
The employee benefits from a payment of minimum amount of €3,000, on behalf of the employer, on its Personal Training Account (PTA).
Yes, the employee receives a return to work allowance (ARE) if he fulfills the conditions allowing him to benefit from it.
The employee may challenge the conditions of validity or application of the CPA. He may also contest his dismissal when he has refused the application of the CPA.
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The employee wishes to challenge the conditions of validity and application of the CPA
The dispute may relate to the validity of the agreement (subject matter and content of the agreement, quality and representativeness of the negotiators of the agreement, need for a written agreement, completion of the formalities of notification and publicity).
The employee must refer the matter to the court within 2 months.
The employee wishes to contest his dismissal
The employee can contest his dismissal if the employer has not complied with the procedural rules of the APC (1 month period to express his refusal; 2 months period to initiate the dismissal procedure).
Dismissal may also be challenged if the rules of protection have not been respected (dismissal of a pregnant employee for example).
The employee must refer the matter to the labor court.
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The informants who answer you belong to the ministry responsible for labor.
Conditions of validity: presence of trade union representatives
Company with less than 11 employees
Company of 11 to 20 employees
Company of 11 to 49 employees
Company of at least 50 employees
Relationship between collective performance agreements and employment contracts
Challenging the collective performance agreement
CPF power supply
Questions and Answers from the Ministry of Labor on the collective performance agreement
Service Public
Ministry of Labor