The crisis resulted in a short-run loss of productivity, reflecting the fall in GDP while employment was safeguarded. In the medium run, with considerable uncertainty, the crisis may positively affect productivity through the increase in teleworking, better dissemination of new technologies and accelerated reallocations.
To accelerate productivity gains, the role of skills, training and soft skills is France’s major structural challenge, given its underperformance in this area. Focusing on skill acquisition could help narrow the gap between the most and least productive companies. Continuing to improve France’s attractiveness for investment will be crucial to reindustrialize the country, regain competitiveness, accelerate productivity gains, improve employment and living standards, and enable better management of the ecological transition. Specifically, further changes to the tax system to reduce its weight on production factors (capital and labour) and align it with those of other advanced countries should be considered.
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