France: New minimum wage from January 1st, 2021

Discover in this article the new minimum wage in France from January 1st, 2021...

Hourly rate, Extra hours rate and night work:

The French minimum hourly wage is 10.25 € since 1st January 2021 (Decree 2020 – 1598 du 16 December 2020). National minimum wage applies also to the transport sector, except for the specialized workers category as it is set by the Transport of goods Collective agreement (Agreement from 06 March 2018, entered into force on 25 April 2019).

Hourly wage for workers in the road transport of GOODS:

Group  Definition of driver’s coefficient  Coefficient Hourly rate
3 bis  Driver of a vehicle weighing up to 3,5 T GVW  118M  10.25 € 
Driver of a heavy goods vehicle weighing more than 3,5 T and up to and including 11 T GVW  120M 10.25 €
5 Driver of a heavy goods vehicle weighing more than 11 T and up to and including 19 T GVW 128M 10.25 €
6 Driver of a heavy goods vehicle weighing more than 19 T GVW 138M 10.25 €
7 Highly qualified driver of a heavy goods vehicle 150M 10.39 €

Under the French collective agreement, drivers of lorries and articulated vehicles with a total mass exceeding 3,5 t, engaged in international transport are considered equivalent to group 7 with a coefficient of 150M. The minimum wage for these drivers should be 10,39 € / gross / hour.

According to the national collective bargaining agreement for road transport, the hourly pay for workers in the road transport sector and auxiliary transport activities must be increased according to the years spent in the company:

+2%, +4%, +6% and +8% after respectively 2, 5, 10 and 15 years of service in the company.

Extra hours rates:


Extra hours paid + 25% * Extra hours paid + 50% *
Long distance drivers – weekly hours 36h to 43h More than 43h 
Long distance drivers – monthly hours 152h to 186h More than 186h 
Short distance drivers – weekly hours 36h to 43h  More than 43h 
Short distance drivers – monthly hours 152h to 186h  More than 186h 


* Extra hours increase when working hours exceed the statutory maximum number of working hours per week (35h for long distance drivers; 39h for short distance drivers).

  • Example: long distance driver’s wage when working 45h hours weekly:
    • 10.25 € * 35h
    • 12.81 € * 8h (from 36th to 43rd extra hours)
    • 15.37 € * 2h (for 44th and 45th hours worked)

Sunday work :

  • more than (3) hours: 24.20 € prime/day
  • less than (3) hours: 10.40 € prime/day

Night Work:

It is considered to be night work every hour worked between 9 pm and 6 am ( according the Article 1 of the Agreement of November 14, 2001 on night work related to the National Collective Agreement for road transport)

Less than 50h worked between 9 pm and 6 am / month  Hourly rate + 20 %
More than 50h worked between 9 pm and 6 am / month Hourly rate + 25 %

What you should remember, all new or renewal declarations made from 1st January 2021 will have to mention the new minimum wage at 10.25 € per hour.

About your drivers’ declarations: all declarations issued up to 31/12/2020 can mention the 2020 minimum wage with no need to correct them, but make sure that 2021 payrolls will comply with the new French minimum wage, that is 10.25 € per hour.

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