Insee Première · November 2023 · n° 1974

Job creation and destruction by French SMEs in the 2010’s

In 2020 compared to 2008, non‑agriculture market firms established in France employed 500 000 more non-temporary employees. Each year, 1.4 million jobs were created, and almost as much were destroyed. These job flows resulted both from plants being opened or shut and from job gains or losses in existing units. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs), especially the smallest among them (microenterprises), created and destroyed more jobs than larger firms. Young firms boosted job creations by the microenterprises. Most of these new firms had limited growing perspectives though. While a few grew, 37% of them did not survive over five years. Young SMEs created more jobs than they destroyed in every employment zone. Almost every zone where employment grew exhibited net job creation by the SMEs.