Ecological transition: the great reorientation of the job market
Originaly published in La Tribune - 1st of may 2022
This is no longer a scoop. Young people want a job that makes sense, that contributes positively to society. Good news for the planet, but how to orient the job market to put it at the service of ecological and societal transition? A collective of recruiters and organizations coordinated by the jobs_that_makesense platform has devised a few courses of action to whisper in the ear of the next President of the Republic.
Ecological planning finally seems to have conquered the Élysée, which should soon appoint a Prime Minister in charge of the subject. Has the call of the IPCC finally been heard? Knowing that we only have 3 years left to keep a livable planet, to activate ourselves at all levels, in our personal lives as well as at work, who can still imagine working as a dad? On the work side, the generations follow each other and are not alike. The metro-work-sleep no longer makes many people dream, no more than the promise of affording a swimming pool at 50 with bullshit jobs. 78% of 18-24 year olds surveyed by the research company Yougov for the Monster site in September 2021 would not accept a job that does not make sense to them. 92% of respondents to a recent survey by Audencia's Positive Impact Chair for jobs_that_makesense wonder about the meaning of their professional activity. Among them, they are 50% to ask themselves questions, and 42% to have started a process of professional retraining. Behind this quest for meaning, the desire to contribute to the challenges of ecological and/or social transition is cited by 57% of respondents.
This is a unique opportunity to move in the right direction. Young people want to contribute positively to society, society needs new energies, the case is settled. Not that easy. Is the world of work ready to welcome this windfall of new workers? Do these new workers have the skills to integrate these new professions? By 2050, ADEME estimates that nearly 1 million new jobs will need to be filled, just for the green economy. The numbers are pretty much the same on the Shift Project side. The low-carbon think tank's "French Economy Transformation Plan" plans to destroy 800,000 jobs (mainly in the oil sector) but also to create 1.1 million (notably through the creation of a powerful cycles, two-wheelers and electric cars), i.e. a net balance of 300,000 jobs gained for the French.
More than a big resignation, it is therefore a big reorientation that will have to be orchestrated.
Three ingredients seem essential to us to take this shift: helping impact companies to recruit, training massively in the professions of ecological and societal transition, and encouraging workers to retrain.
We could say that the job market is just an easy-to-solve mathematical equation with companies recruiting on one side and job seekers looking for work on the other. The problem is that the economy of positive impact is mainly based on small structures, associations or companies, which do not necessarily have the resources necessary for their first recruitment. How can we give them the boost they need to take this step? One of the solutions is to be found in the Manifesto for the economy of tomorrow carried by the Impact France Movement, which calls in particular for taxation, aid and public investment to be redirected towards ecological and social competitiveness. We could also imagine a support system for young companies with an impact similar to that of Young Innovative Companies with exemption from employers' social security contributions during their first 5 years of existence in order to allow them to recruit more quickly.
Assuming that this issue of the incentive to hire impact structures is administratively and quickly settled, are the capacities of job seekers already adapted to the requirements of the next decade? Jobs in ecological and societal transition require specific skills, both technical and behavioral. We do not improvise ourselves as specialists in agro-ecology, the energy renovation of buildings, or even the circular economy. On the behavioral side, the next crises require innovation. Skills in creativity, adaptability, citizen mobilization, facilitation, or change management will be just as essential to build our future society. What do we begin with ? To promote the upskilling of as many people as possible, consider these sectors as shortage occupations and dedicate part of the vocational training budget to supporting these skills. This can go through a contribution from the CPF for any training in these trades and skills, or even the creation of a specific fund for the youngest. And because training also goes through experience, we invite you to recognize associative commitment as a Teaching Unit in its own right, on the model of what can already be done in certain universities, such as the University of Paris for example. . One thing is certain, there is nothing more formative than action.
Finally, and this would be doing a great service to Social Security, let's allow as many people as possible not to go on sick leave, or to resign, but to reorient themselves. According to the Audencia study for jobs_that_makesense cited above, the first obstacle to retraining towards impact is financial, because you have to finance your retraining (training, period of unemployment, etc.) and accept a potential drop in salary. In this regard, APEC estimates the average pay gap between the SSE and the traditional sector at 10%.
To resolve these difficulties and succeed in the major reorientation that we are calling for, let us support these reconversions as best we can through financial measures in particular. Imagine extending the reclassification leave to employees who wish to reorient themselves towards a career in the ecological and societal transition, and not only within the framework of a Job Protection Plan. And since the future is by definition uncertain, since the next few years promise to be chaotic, let's create a lifelong guidance and reorientation service. And maybe then, on Monday mornings, we won't go to work, we'll go and contribute to the march of the world...
Les premiers signataires
Jean-Christophe Perrin, Fabien Sécherre et toute l’équipe de jobs_that_makesense,
Florent Guignard et Antoine Dujardin (Le Drenche), Laetitia Vasseur (Halte à L'Obsolescence Programmée), Muriel Papin (No Plastic In My Sea), Marie Nguyen et Antoine Coulaud (Wedressfair), Côme De Cossé Brissac (La Solive), Claire Pétreault (Les Pépites Vertes), Hélène De Vestele (Edeni), Anne Le Corre (Printemps écologique), Océane Puech (GreenScale),
Emilie Schmitt (Activ'Action), Léa Karki (AFEV), Mariane Behar (Aime), Alex Huyn (Aktio), Adrien Laprévote (Allo Louis), Vincent Guerpillon (Alter Compta), Anne Silberstein (Aneko), Mathieu Delot (Apels), Caroline Liby (Appart & Sens), Maxime Dekowski (Arkée), Diane Caussade (Association Ballade), Matthieu Jungfer (Atelier Unes), Antoine Martin (Biomere), Elise Rey Du Boissieu (Bric A Vrac), Stéphanie Dick (Cabas Tuyau), Mathilde Hiesse (Cacré), Benjamin Salem (Change Please France), Stéphanie Talevis (Circul'R), Maryline Macchi (Convergence), Fanny Roussey (Convergences), Estelle Maruzzo (Cultures Et Compagnies), Marion Scapin (Dabba Consigne), Aude Amarrurtu (Defi Services +), Oscar Lustin (Domani), Julien Derville (Dunia), Léa Gunther Dupont (Eclosyou), Nacera Mansouri (Ecole 3A Lyon), Montel Pierre (Ecolearn), Jérémie Jean (Egreen), Christophe Meyer (Ekolo), Alice Flodrops (Emmaüs Connect), Thomas Delage (Entoureo), Tiphaine Gualda (Entrepreneur), Cédric Tomissi et Julie Dautel (Eonef), Ameyna Fressinaud (Epicc), Severin Prats (Ethi'Kdo), Chantal Panetta (Face Paris hauts-de-Seine), Rozenn Morice (Familles Solidaires Bzh), Maud De Balby (Fampao), Armonia Pierantozzi (Fertîles), Omar Bendjelloun (Finetic), Thibaut Boiziau (Freepry), Séverine Hassler (Gamino), Marion Baltazard (GEIEC), Nicolas Teulade (Graines & Germoirs / Pollen Scop), Solenn Le Divenah et Fannie Nolhier (Groupe SOS), Olivia Olivia Rotondo (Gymglish), Robin Sicsic (Handineo), Perrine Lhote (Hisse & Haut), Margaux Labidi (Hopening), Benoit Petit (Hubblo), Laure Bulteel (Initiatives Solidaires), Armand De Coussergues (Institut Supérieur De L'Environnement), Mari Kameyama et Quentin Iprex (Investir&+), Thomas Groell (Jib Smart Home), Antoine Maurel (Karma Search), Aurélie Notarianni (Kedelaé), Cecile Pierrat-Schiever (Kodiko), Inã¨S Meyer (Komunii), Séverine Hassler (Kouide), Veronica Susman (La Crème Libre), Christophe Besson (La Fontaine D Annibal Fol26), Marie-France Girgis (La Fourche), Candice Dupré (La Réponse D.), Madeleine De Lisle (La Ruche Qui Dit Oui!), Louis Lefevre (La Tête Dans Les Nuages), Augustin Courtier (Latitudes), Olivier Girinon (Le Bastion), Laurent Segaud (Le Marché Du Jour), Marina Carpentier (Lemonaid & ChariTea), Hélène Falise (Le Village Potager), Adèle Debost (Les Amis D'Hubert), Emilie Renault (Les Fées Recup Sarl), Alizée Danchaud (Les Ombres), Jonathan Reiss et Delphine Vandermeersch (Les Petites L'Ouches), Blandine Barré (Les Réparables), Amandine Garnier (Les Raisonné·e·s), Christophe Conceicao (Live For Good), Coline De Georges (Lumia), Maxime Marchand (Mao Boa), Louis Sibille (Maïa), Florence Grosse (Made In Montreuil), Sarah Forest (Maforêt), Alexia Lechevestrier (Make Ici), Mathilde Thorel (Makesense), Thomas Dehier (Marmites Volantes), Reine De Méreuil (Matrice), Manon Fargelat (Meanwhile Boutique), Pauline Courbon (Moulinot), Lobna Calleja (Ogilvy), Paul Charon (Omaj), Charlotte Veaux (Onyo), Lucie Vegrinne (Opencommunities), Yann Gabay (Oreegami), Shu Zhang (Pandobac), Boris Oudet (Pathtech), Victor Matei (Pegasus), Eric Vachez (Planete Mer), Anne Trombini (Pour Une Agriculture Du Vivant), Yoann Hodeau (Prowd), Eva Brabant, Cécile Gueguen et Lil Rimsa (Réseau Des Ecoles De La Transition Écologique - Etre), Alexandre Gubert (Scunetta), Dimitri Pivot (Second Souffle), Yves Cambier (Seniors D'Avenir Et Cie), Benoit Le Gouge (Silo), Louise Block, Pascal Dubaele (Singa), Marie Floquet (Sinny&Ooko), Olympe Chabert (Smartback), Elsa Sayagh (Somanyways), Elodie Jolivet (Sparknews), Tanguy Viet (Supernova), Marion Graeffly (Telecoop), Enki Barache (Tigoun), Louis Falga (Tirelires D'Avenir), Michael Roes (Toopi Organics), Aude Bardaine (Toutbon (Demain Sas)), Cécile Staehle (Troopers Web Republic), Mikail Tanev (Upcyland), Marc Singer et Hubert Clément (Util Studio), Léa Dégardin (Via Id), Sarah Benosman (Vrac'N Roll), Marina Ferre (Yuact), Pierre-Emmanuel Saint-Esprit (Zack), Marie-Pierre Dequier (Ze.Game).