On June 10 France’s National Assembly adopted a proposed law for anti-discrimination action groups. Government support has finally come through for an initiative that has come back to the fore at the same time as the Minister for Labor has committed to allowing certain sorts of collective action depending on the type of business all the while invoking social dialogue before legal action. The adopted text does not reflect this commitment, even though the government spokesperson Jean-Marie Le Guen and Razzy Hammadi (who put forward the project) stressed several times that within the framework of legislative process, arrangements would adapt to the “significant specificities” of businesses and its stakeholders. After consumption and health (under discussion), the issue of discrimination marks the third area where group action (a new departure for France) will be introduced.
The text allows for associations that have been officially engaged in combatting discrimination for at least three years as well as representative union bodies to take legal action in order to secure compensation for people placed in “similar or identical” situations yet who suffer damages through discrimination vis-à-vis others “in a comparable situation” based on: their origin, gender, family situation, pregnancy, physical appearance, family name, address, health, disability, genetic characteristics, morals, sexual orientation of identity, age, political opinion, union activity, ethnic origin, nationality, race, or religion.
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