Civil servants are excluded if they benefit from a more favourable legal status (Art. L 121-1 LC). Employment of civil Servants (fonctionnaires de l'Etat) is governed by the civil servants' statute of 16 April 1979, as subsequently modified (Loi du 16 avril 1979 fixant le statut général des fonctionnaires de l'Etat).

Art. L 122-1 LC.

Art. L 122-5 LC: a fixed-term contract can be renewed twice within the time-limit of 24 months. However, this limitation is not applicable to FTC concluded with specific categories of workers (university teachers/researchers, artists, athletes, coaches).

General rule: 24 months: art. L 122-4 (1) LC
Exceptions: In limited situations can be up to 60 months: art. L 122-2 (4) LC.

Source: Eurostat, annual average for 2009.
The figure refers to the percentage of employee with a contract of limited duration (= temporary job) of total number of employee aged 15-74 years.
Eurostat data are based on the following definition:
"A job may be considered temporary if employer and employee agree that its end is determined by objective conditions such as a specific date, the completion of a task or the return of another employee who has been temporarily replaced (usually stated in a work contract of limited duration). Typical cases are: (a) persons with seasonal employment; (b) persons engaged by an agency or employment exchange and hired to a third party to perform a specific task (unless there is a written work contract of unlimited duration); (c) persons with specific training contracts."

Art. L 121-5 LC: the trial period should not exceed 6 months.
One exception however: when the starting gross salary reaches a certain level to be determined by decree, the notice period is 12 months.

Art. L. 124-5 LC:
(1) Dans un délai d’un mois à compter de la notification du licenciement conformément aux dispositions de l’article L. 124-3, le salarié peut, par lettre recommandée, demander à l’employeur les motifs du licenciement.
(2) L’employeur est tenu d’énoncer avec précision par lettre recommandée, au plus tard un mois après la notification de la lettre recommandée, le ou les motifs du licenciement liés à l’aptitude ou à la conduite du salarié ou fondés sur les nécessités du fonctionnement de l’entreprise, de l’établissement ou du service qui doivent être réels et sérieux. (...)

Art. L 124-5 (2) LC : the employer is required to provide to the employee upon his/her request, in a precise way, the grounds for the dismissal related to the employee's ability or conduct or based on the operational requirements of the company, establishment or service, which must be real and serious.

Except for marital status and pregnancy, those grounds are listed in art. L 251-1 LC (non-discrimination in employment including dismissal: art. L 251-2 1) c) LC).
* Marital status: art. L 337-5 LC: No contractual clause can stipulate that the contract of a woman employee be terminated on the grounds that she got married.
* Pregnancy and maternity leave: art. L 337-1 LC: Dismissal with notice is prohibited during pregnancy (as established by a medical certificate), during a period of 12 weeks after birth.
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A l'exception du motif du mariage et de la grossesse, ces motifs sont énumérés à l'art. L 251-1 du Code du trvail (non-discrimination dans l'emploi, y compris le licenciement : art. L 251-2 LC).
* Situation familiale : art. L 337-5 LC : Aucune clause contractuelle ne peut stipuler que le contrat d'une employée peut être résilié au motif qu'elle s'est mariée.
* Congé de grossesse et de maternité : art. L 337-1 LC : Le licenciement avec préavis est interdit pendant la grossesse (tel qu'établi par un certificat médical), pendant une période de 12 semaines après la naissance.

* Pregnant women /women on maternity leave: prohibition of dismissal: art. L 337-1 LC.
* Workers' representatives: prohibition of dismissal: art. L 415-10 and 415-11 LC.
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* Femmes enceintes / femmes en congé de maternité : interdiction de licenciement : art. L 337-1 LC.
* Représentants des travailleurs : interdiction de licenciement :
art. L 415-10 et 415-11 LC.

See art. L 124-3 LC
Specific article concerning employers having at least 150 employees: art. L 124-2 LC.

According to art. L 121-5 (2) LC, the statutory notice period is:
*2 months for a tenure of less than 5 years
*4 months from 5 years until 10 years of service
*6 months over 10 years of service

Art. L 124-6 LC.

Art. L 166-1 LC.

Art. L 166-2 LC.

Art. L 166-4 LC.

Art. L 166-2 and L 166-4 LC.

No criteria listed.
Art. L 166-3 LC only refers to criteria as one of the elements to be communicated to the trade union representatives for consultation related to the adoption of the social plan.

Art. L 166-2 LC and L 166-5 LC.

Art. L 125-9 LC: within a limit of 1 year and if requested by the employee.

Art. L 124-7 LC: except in case of serious misconduct, a dismissed employee (under a contract of indeterminate duration) is entitled to severance pay ("indemnité de départ") provided he or she have been continuously employed for at least five years with the same employer and is not eligible to an old-age pension.
Statutory severance pay is determined according to the length of service and should not be less than:
* 1 month's wages for at least 5 years of continuous service;
* 2 month's wages for at least 10 years of continuous service;
* 3 month's wages for at least 15 years of continuous service;
* 6 month's wages for at least 20 years of continuous service;
* 9 month's wages for at least 25 years of continuous service;
* 12 month's wages for at least 30 years of continuous service.

No specific redundancy payment. Severance pay covers any dismissal (except for serious misconduct): Art. L 124-7 LC.

Art. L 124-12 (1) LC: free determination by the Court when dismissal is not justified by genuine and serious reasons.

However, in case of non-respect of a fundamental procedural requirement, compensation awarded by the judge shall not exceed 1 month's wages.: art. L 124-12 (3) LC.

Art. L 124-12 (2) LC : the judge can prescribe reinstatement if requested by the worker and approved by the employer.
In some cases, reinstatement is mandatory if requested by the worker (art. L 124-12 (4) LC).

Mandatory conciliation is only foreseen for collective disputes: art. L. 164-1 LC.

Art. L 124-11 (2) LC.