Performance of the employment contract: only documents drawn up in French are applicable
Publié le 09 août 2023 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
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Rules and regulations Documents setting out the employee’s obligations and the elements necessary for the performance of his employment contract (job offer, job offer, collective agreement, etc.) must be drawn up in French. This does not apply when these documents are transmitted from the foreigner. The Court of Cassation has just reiterated this in a judgment delivered on 7 June 2023.
An employee dismissed by his employer brought an action before the court for reimbursement of a commission recovery made on his salary. He contends that the document setting out the objectives necessary for the calculation of commissions (compensation plan) was not applicable to him because it was drafted in English.
The Court of Appeal rejected the employee’s application on the ground that the working language of the company was English. It is based on the writing in English of the emails exchanged between the staff and the employer and the working documents drawn up by the employee himself. The employee appeals to the Court of Cassation.
The Court of Cassation quashes and quashes the judgment of the Court of Appeal. It considers that the documents setting out the objectives necessary for the calculation of the fees should be communicated in French except whether they are transmitted from the foreigner. This rule therefore also applies to companies who practice a foreign language.
Thus, the Court confirms that an employer must draft in French documents containing ‘obligations for the employee or provisions the knowledge of which is necessary for the performance of his work’.
