Disability retirements rise sharply in public sector

According to the annual report on the state of the public service, 14,200 civil servants (excluding military personnel) retired due to disability last year, which is 38% more than in 2024. These departures account for more than half of the 7% increase in public sector retirements, which had decreased by 14% in 2024.

Territorial and hospital services see biggest increase

In the territorial and hospital public services, the increase exceeds 50%, and the number of disability-related retirements (11,862) is the highest since at least 2000, according to data from the Caisse des dépôts. This suggests that these sectors are experiencing a particularly significant impact from the trend.

Reform may be linked to rise in disability retirements

The Borne reform of 2023, which began to push back the legal retirement age for civil servants to 64 years, could paradoxically have pushed some workers who were too worn out to work longer into disability retirement. When questioned by AFP, the Direction générale de l'administration et de la fonction publique (DGAFP) did not entirely rule out this hypothesis.

Pension reforms may have contributed to trend

The Caisse des dépôts, which manages the pension fund for territorial and hospital civil servants, had already estimated at the beginning of 2025 that successive pension reforms "may have contributed to generating more disability-related retirements." Notably, it pointed out that "by raising the age at which retirement benefits become available and by tightening the conditions for full pension access."

Union official highlights concerns about reform impact

Sylviane Brousse, coordinator of the CGT public sector union, told AFP that she has warned for several years about this phenomenon. She cites among the possible causes of this increase "the extension of the retirement age, since there is a certain wear and tear."

Employers may be using disability retirement to cut costs

For the union representative, the increase is also due to employers, who would use disability retirement as a means to "reduce payroll." "The easy solution is to offer disability pensions whenever there is a position restriction," she said. "It is much more convenient than trying to reassign the employees."

System for reassigning unfit employees is underused

According to her, the system intended to prepare for the reassignment of employees who become unfit for their posts within a year is "almost not implemented." This suggests that there may be a lack of effective alternatives to disability retirement for affected workers.

Disability retirees receive pensions based on service years

A civil servant deemed unable to resume their duties is retired early, with a pension calculated based on their years of service, supplemented by a pension if the disability results from service. The state public service is little affected by these disability-related departures (6% of departures), compared to 18% in the territorial service and 15% in hospitals.

Most affected civil servants are women

The affected civil servants retired on average at 57.6 years, compared to 63 years for those retiring due to old age. More than two out of three are women (68% compared to 63% for all departures).

Previous peak linked to case management changes

In 2018-2019, a previous peak in the territorial and hospital public services seemed to be initially due, according to the Caisse des dépôts, to "a reduction in the number of pending cases." The 2023 reform has been suspended since September 1, 2026, and until January 1, 2028, the legal age is frozen at 62 years and 9 months for the affected generations.