The arrangements for additional birth leave specified by decrees of 30 May 2026

Decrees No. 2026-419 and No. 2026-425 of 30 May 2026 relating to additional birth leave

Parents of children born as from 1 January 2026 may benefit from an additional birth leave at the end of other parental leaves. With a duration of two months, this leave may be split into two periods of one month and must be taken within 9 months following the birth or the arrival of the child in the household. To benefit from it, the employee must respect a notice period of at least one month before the start of the leave. This period is reduced to 15 days when the leave immediately follows paternity leave, childcare leave or adoption leave.

The easing of certain employer obligations under the Law on the Simplification of Business Life

Law No. 2026-403 of 26 May 2026 on the Simplification of Economic Life

The Law on the Simplification of Business Life, enacted on 26 May 2026, has reduced certain administrative procedures that fall to companies. Among the most notable developments is the one relating to the entry into force of the internal rules. Since 28 May 2026, the entry into force of the internal regulations is no longer subject to its submission to the labour court in whose jurisdiction the company or establishment is located, which now constitutes a optional formality. This law has also relaxed the obligation to inform employees in the event of the transfer of a business by reducing, for companies with fewer than 50 employees, the information period from 2 to 1 month and the penalty for non-compliance from 2% to 0.5% of the sale price, while removing the direct information obligation for companies with at least 50 employees.

Repeated exposure to a sexist climate may be sufficient to establish sexual harassment, regardless of any individual attack directed at the victim

Cass. soc., 28 May 2026, n°24-22.754

In this case, an employee who was dismissed for gross misconduct reported acts of sexual harassment that she was experiencing, along with her colleagues, in her work environment. The Court of Appeal rejected her claim on the grounds that the statements produced did not establish the existence of sexually or sexist connoted remarks directed at her colleagues alone, and not at her. The High Court did not follow the reasoning of the lower court judges and held that the employee was also a victim of sexual harassment by being forced to endure a humiliating and degrading work environment, regardless of the fact that she had not been directly targeted by such remarks or behaviour.

An action for annulment of a collective agreement may be brought within a two-month period even where it reproduces provisions from a prior agreement

Cass. soc., 28 May 2026, n°24-19.849

In this case, non-signatory trade unions sought the annulment of a categorical group agreement concluded in 2019, which reproduced provisions from a 2014 agreement. The employer argued that the action was inadmissible on the grounds that the lack of any challenge to the 2014 agreement precluded any subsequent request for annulment of the provisions reproduced in 2019. For the High Court, the two-month time limit for bringing an action for the nullity of a collective agreement concluded after 23 September 2017 applies even where it reproduces provisions from a previous agreement.