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Human Resources
It is forbidden to better pay an employee because of the shared family relationship with the employer
Publié le 14 mai 2025 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
The employer cannot justify a difference in treatment between two employees by the criterion of belonging to his family circle. This is what the Court of Cassation states in a ruling issued on April 9, 2025 and published in the bulletin.
A dismissed worker takes her employer to court to demand a recall of wages and allowances. She claims to have suffered unequal treatment constituting discrimination because she did not belong to her employer's family.
His better-paid colleague is his employer’s wife. He justifies this difference in treatment by the greater availability and confidentiality of his wife.
The Court of Appeal condemns the employer. In her view, the employer justifies the difference in treatment between the employee and her colleague by a family criterion, which constitutes discrimination. The employer appeals to the Court of Cassation.
The Court of Cassation upholds the appeal judgment. It holds that family status constitutes a ground of discrimination prohibited by the Court of Justice of the European Union and by Article L1132-1 of the Labor Code.
The Court states that the situation of the employee falls within the scope of application of this article because the difference in treatment by the employer is for lack of family.
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