The calendarStaff representatives · protection
Protected employees in France: how long the protection lasts, and how the authorisation works
A CSE member or union delegate can be dismissed only with the labour inspector’s authorisation (L2411-3 and L2411-5). After the mandate: 6 months for a former elected member, 12 for a former delegate who served a year. A candidate has 6 months from registered sending, sometimes earlier if imminent candidacy was known before the summons (L2411-7). Decision within 2 months; silence means refusal.
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How long does the protection last for each mandate?
The protection covers the mandate itself, then a period that depends on the mandate and sometimes on its length.
| Mandate | Protection | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Elected member or substitute of the CSE | During the mandate, then 6 months after it expires | C. trav. L2411-5 |
| Union representative to the CSE | During the mandate; 6 months after if designated for 2 years and not renewed | C. trav. L2411-5 |
| Candidate in the CSE elections | 6 months from registered sending; earlier protection may apply if known imminence before the summons is proved | C. trav. L2411-7 |
| Employee who asked for the elections | 6 months from the first union letter | C. trav. L2411-6 |
| Union delegate, union section representative | During the mandate, then 12 months if held for at least a year | C. trav. L2411-3 and L2142-1-2 |
| Proximity representative | During the mandate, then 6 months | C. trav. L2411-8 |
| Employment tribunal adviser (conseiller prud’homme) | During the mandate, then 6 months | C. trav. L2411-22 |
Article L2411-1 lists the other protected mandates, including the employee adviser (conseiller du salarié) and the union defender; the protection also applies during safeguard, reorganisation or liquidation proceedings.
Sources: C. trav. L2411-5 · C. trav. L2411-3 · C. trav. L2411-7 · C. trav. L2411-6 · C. trav. L2411-8 · C. trav. L2411-1
Are you still protected on the planned date, and which steps apply?
Choose the mandate, give its dates or the date of the candidacy, then the planned measure and its date: the calendar works out the mandate’s window and procedure deadlines; imminent candidacy known before the summons requires evidence review, without an expiry inferred from that knowledge. The example: a CSE member whose mandate ended on 31 March 2026, facing a planned dismissal on 15 August 2026.
Fictional example · protection calendar
Protected until 30 September 2026: the measure needs the labour inspector’s authorisation.
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 30 | 31 |
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | |||||
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
| 31 |
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 | 29 | 30 |
- End of the mandate
- Dismissal procedure starts
- Last day of the protection
The steps of the procedure
- Preliminary interview with the employee
- Request for authorisation to the labour inspector
- Decision within 2 months of receiving the request; silence means refusal
- Appeal to the minister within 2 months, or to the administrative court within 2 months
Ordinary steps for the single selected mandate: suspension for serious misconduct or another mandate requires specific rules. A former mandate alone does not require a CSE opinion.
For withdrawal, the calendar applies Saturdays, Sundays and the eleven national public holidays; check other non-working holidays and local public holidays.
Protection is calculated for one mandate: check each. For candidacy, the six-month window runs from registered sending; receipt of the union notification or known imminence before the summons are distinct grounds to review (L2411-7).
Who benefits from protected-employee status?
An employee holding one of the mandates listed in article L2411-1 of the Labour Code: union delegate, elected member or substitute of the CSE, union representative to the CSE, proximity representative, employee adviser, employment tribunal adviser or union defender, among others.
For 6 months, it also covers a candidate in the CSE elections, from the registered sending of the candidacy, and the first employee who asked for the elections to be organised (articles L2411-6 and L2411-7). A candidate is protected even before sending if the employer knew the candidacy was imminent before calling them to the preliminary interview.
Sources: C. trav. L2411-1 · C. trav. L2411-7 · C. trav. L2411-6
How does the dismissal authorisation work?
The preliminary interview comes first. For an elected CSE member, a union representative to the CSE or a proximity representative still in office, the committee, if it exists and consultation is required (at least 50 employees or an applicable collective provision), then gives its opinion by secret ballot, after hearing the employee, and the request goes to the labour inspector within 15 days of that opinion (Labour Code, articles L2421-3 and R2421-8 to R2421-10).
The inspector holds an adversarial inquiry and decides within 2 months of receiving the request; silence beyond that means refusal (article R2421-11). For mandates covered by article R2421-14, in cases of serious misconduct, the employer can suspend the employee: where a CSE opinion is required, it is given within 10 days of suspension and the request is submitted within 48 hours of the deliberation. Where that opinion is not required, the request is submitted within 8 days of suspension (article R2421-14).
Sources: C. trav. L2421-3 · C. trav. R2421-10 · C. trav. R2421-11 · C. trav. R2421-14
Is an agreed termination possible with a protected employee?
Yes, but it is not approved by the usual procedure: it needs the labour inspector’s authorisation, and the contract can end only on the day after the authorisation (Labour Code, article L1237-15).
Each party keeps 15 calendar days from the signature to withdraw (article L1237-13). An expiry on a Saturday, Sunday, public holiday or other non-working holiday moves to the next working day (article R1231-1). Where a CSE opinion is required for the current mandate, it precedes signature of the agreement; the authorisation request is then sent after the withdrawal period ends. The inspector checks, in particular, free consent and the absence of a link with the mandate.
Sources: C. trav. L1237-15 · C. trav. L1237-13 · C. trav. R1231-1 · Service Public F19030
How do you challenge the labour inspector’s decision?
The employer, the employee or the union can appeal to the Minister of Labour within 2 months of notification; the minister’s silence for more than 4 months means refusal (Labour Code, article R2422-1).
The administrative court can also be seized within 2 months of the notification of the decision (Code of Administrative Justice, article R421-1). The employment tribunal does not rule on the authorisation itself.
Sources: C. trav. R2422-1 · CJA R421-1
What does article L2411-5 of the Labour Code provide for CSE members?
The text that makes dismissing an elected member subject to the labour inspector and extends the protection by 6 months.
Le licenciement d’un membre élu de la délégation du personnel du comité social et économique, titulaire ou suppléant ou d’un représentant syndical au comité social et économique, ne peut intervenir qu’après autorisation de l’inspecteur du travail.
L’ancien membre élu de la délégation du personnel du comité social et économique ainsi que l’ancien représentant syndical qui, désigné depuis deux ans, n’est pas reconduit dans ses fonctions lors du renouvellement du comité bénéficient également de cette protection pendant les six premiers mois suivant l’expiration de leur mandat ou la disparition de l’institution.
In English, briefly (our summary, not an official translation): An elected member of the CSE, full or substitute, or a union representative to the CSE can be dismissed only after authorisation by the labour inspector. A former elected member, and a former union representative designated for two years who is not renewed when the committee is re-elected, keep this protection for the first six months after their mandate expires or the committee disappears.
What do staff representatives and employers ask?
Is the CSE’s opinion enough to dismiss an elected member?
No. The committee’s opinion, favourable or not, does not replace the authorisation: only the labour inspector authorises the dismissal (Labour Code, article L2421-3). If the establishment has no committee, the inspector is seized directly.
Is authorisation needed to transfer a protected employee?
Yes, if the employee is included in a partial transfer of a business or an establishment and holds one of the mandates of article L2414-1 of the Labour Code. The request goes to the inspector 15 days before the transfer date (article R2421-17).
What happens to the suspension if the inspector refuses?
It has no effect when the dismissal is refused by the inspector or, on appeal, by the minister (Labour Code, article R2421-14).
Is a former union delegate always protected for 12 months?
Only if they held the functions for at least a year; the protection then runs for the 12 months after the functions end (Labour Code, article L2411-3). A union section representative follows the same rule (article L2142-1-2).
Which texts is this protection calendar based on?
- Labour Code, article L2411-5 (elected members and union representatives to the CSE)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L2411-3 (union delegate)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L2411-7 (candidate in the CSE elections)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L2411-1 (protected mandates)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L2421-3 (consulting the CSE, seizing the inspector)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, articles R2421-8 to R2421-10 (interview, CSE opinion, request within 15 days)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, articles R2421-4 and R2421-11 (inquiry, decision within 2 months)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article R2421-14 (suspension for serious misconduct)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, articles L1237-13 and L1237-15 (agreed termination of a protected employee)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article R2422-1 (appeal to the minister)Légifrance, in French
- Code of Administrative Justice, article R421-1 (2-month time limit to go to court)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, articles L2414-1 and R2421-17 (partial transfer of a business)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L2411-6 (employee who asks for the elections)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L1237-13 (withdrawal)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article R1231-1 (expiry extension)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L2411-22 (employment tribunal adviser)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article L2142-1-2 (union section representative)Légifrance, in French
- Labour Code, article R2421-17 (transfer request)Légifrance, in French
- Service Public, dismissing a staff representative (CSE consultation)DILA, in French
- Service Public, agreed termination in the private sector (protected employee)DILA, in French
- Labour Code, articles L2411-8 and L2411-22 (proximity representative, employment tribunal adviser)Légifrance, in French
Texts cited last checked: 26 September 2026