Description:
We use a simple labour demand framework with heterogeneous workers to evaluate the French 35-hour law impacts on inequality and employment. Our simulations result in a favourable effect of the 35-hour work week on employment levels, but unfavourable effects on working hours: job creations fall between 15-50% of the arithmetic rule of three, says between 105,000 to 350,000 jobs. The 35-hour work week would reduce wage inequality among the various categories of employees and within the whole working population, as well as between employed and unemployed populations, but they would also increase welfare inequality among all employees, as well as within the whole working population