In terms of employment, agglomerations have withstood the crisis well

In Metropolitan France, the economic crisis that began in 2008 affected areas in different ways, particularly the cities and their “area of influence”. Given the smaller-scale shock in the tertiary sector, the labour market in the agglomerations, which was little oriented towards industry, fared better than the rest of the country. In many smaller-sized areas, which were also less attractive with a less skilled working population and where dynamic sectors were less present, there was a higher increase in the number of unemployed. The specifics of the local economy explain the improved performance of the labour market in the south and west. Conversely, in the northeast and central France, the trend was generally towards a decline in employment.