In France, Almost Everyone Depends on the State Without Realizing It

En France, presque tout le monde est fonctionnaire sans le savoir

Jérôme Baray ()
Additional contact information
Jérôme Baray: ARGUMans - Laboratoire de recherche en gestion Le Mans Université - UM - Le Mans Université

Post-Print from HAL

Abstract: This article revisits the conventional distinction between the public and private sectors in France by shifting the focus from legal employment status to financial flows. It argues that a substantial share of incomes commonly considered "private" actually depends on public funding decisions. Drawing on data from national statistical agencies, public administrations, and sectoral institutions, the analysis highlights the pervasive role of subsidies, public procurement, regulated tariffs, tax credits, social insurance reimbursements, and financial guarantees in shaping economic activity. Public employment, healthcare professions, agriculture, culture, justice, construction, regulated industries, the press, and start-ups all appear deeply intertwined with the state. Rather than acting merely as a redistributive or corrective force, the state emerges as a central actor structuring markets and economic incentives. The article therefore challenges the simplistic opposition between civil servants and private-sector workers and proposes a broader understanding of public dependence within the contemporary French economy.

Keywords: State; public funding; public–private relations; public procurement; public economics; economic regulation; subsidies; economic dependence; secteur public et privé; État; financements publics; dépendance économique; subventions; régulation économique; économie publique; commande publique (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-01-03
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Published in The Conversation France, 2026, https://theconversation.com/en-france-presque-tout-le-monde-est-fonctionnaire-sans-le-savoir-270231. ⟨10.64628/AAK.gpqhy4cs6⟩

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05439412

DOI: 10.64628/AAK.gpqhy4cs6

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Post-Print from HAL
Bibliographic data for series maintained by CCSD ().