Insee Focus · May 2024 · n° 327

At the end of 2021, payroll employment exceeded pre-health crisis level in almost all employment zones

By the end of 2021, in mainland France, payroll employment in the market sector was 3.7% higher than its pre-health crisis level at the end of 2019: it increased in the vast majority of employment zones.

The thirty employment zones where payroll employment increased the most (+7.5% over two years) were mainly located along the coast, similar to the period before the health crisis; half of them specialised in tourism, but the other sectors of activity also contributed to the strong increase. Zones where employment fell or rose only slightly were more likely to specialise in industry.