The barème Macron (the statutory scale capping unfair-dismissal awards, article L1235-3 of the Labour Code) caps the compensation due for dismissal without real and serious cause. Expressed in months of gross salary, the ceilings run from 1 to 20 months and the floors from 0.5 to 3 months, according to length of service and the firm's headcount.
For each level of length of service, the scale defines a floor and a ceiling for the award. The maximum ceiling reaches 20 months of gross salary for the longest lengths of service. The judge sets the amount within the applicable range; save for exceptions, they may not go below the floor or above the ceiling.
This award compensates the unjustified nature of the dismissal. It is distinct from the statutory or contractual severance pay (indemnité de licenciement), which is due separately and is calculated on length of service, independently of any fault on the employer's part.
The scale sets, for each year of length of service, a floor and a ceiling expressed in months of gross salary. The amounts rise with length of service up to a ceiling of twenty months for the longest careers (twenty-nine years and more); in firms with at least eleven employees, the floor reaches three months from two years of service. The complete grid, year by year, is authoritative at article L1235-3 on Légifrance.
The reference salary used is in principle the average of the last twelve months, or a third of the last three months if that formula is more favourable to the employee.
In firms with fewer than eleven employees, the floors are reduced: 0.5 months of salary at one year of service, against 1 month in larger firms, where the floor reaches 3 months from two years. Below one year, there is no floor. This reduced floor ceases to apply beyond ten full years of service (Cass. soc., 29 April 2025, no. 23-23.494). The ceiling, for its part, stays the same whatever the size of the firm.
The amount retained depends on concrete factors: the employee's age, difficulties in finding new work, length of service, personal situation. The best way to estimate a realistic amount is to compare the file with recent decisions on close profiles, rather than mechanically aiming for the ceiling.
Example. For an employee with ten years of service in a firm of at least eleven employees, the scale opens a range running from a floor of three months to a ceiling of several months of gross salary (see the exact grid on Légifrance). A judge will rarely retain the ceiling straight away: the position within the range is justified by age, length of service, the difficulty of finding new work and what comparable decisions have awarded. It is this comparison, not the theoretical ceiling, that grounds a credible claim.
The scale does not apply where the dismissal is null and void: harassment, discrimination, breach of a fundamental freedom, in particular. In those cases, where the employee does not seek to continue the contract or reinstatement is impossible, the judge awards compensation payable by the employer that cannot be lower than the salaries of the last six months (article L1235-3-1). The Cour de cassation (France's supreme civil court) also confirmed the scale's conformity by two full-bench rulings of 11 May 2022 (no. 21-14.490 and 21-15.247), which closed a long period of uncertainty.
The scale caps only the award for dismissal without real and serious cause. Other sums may be added and are not capped by it: the statutory or contractual severance pay (indemnité de licenciement), the payment in lieu of notice and for paid leave, or any wage back-pay. A complete valuation adds up these items, which the scale estimate alone does not do.
The scale came under fierce challenge on the ground that it would prevent adequate compensation of the loss, in breach of international texts (ILO Convention No. 158, the European Social Charter). Some conseils de prud'hommes (France's labour courts) set it aside for a time through an "in concreto" review. The Cour de cassation ruled in full bench on 11 May 2022: the scale conforms to ILO Convention No. 158, and the judge cannot set it aside case by case. The European Social Charter, for its part, has no direct effect in domestic law according to the Court. The doctrinal debate remains, but the rule is now settled.
The scale concerns only a dismissal challenged before the court. It has no equivalent in a rupture conventionnelle (a statutory mutually-agreed termination), where the specific termination indemnity is at least equal to the statutory severance pay and is freely negotiated above it. Comparing the cost of a risky dismissal (the scale award in the event of a ruling against the employer, plus the other sums due) with that of a negotiated termination is precisely one of the trade-offs an employer weighs upstream.
Crossing length of service, headcount and comparable case law for each file takes time. Plato produces this estimate and ties it to real decisions. See also how to estimate the compensation due and which AI tool to use to prepare a prud'hommes case.
What is the maximum amount under the barème Macron?
20 months of gross salary, reached from 29 full years of service. The floor drops to 0.5 months for one year of service in firms with fewer than eleven employees; below one year, no floor applies.
Is the barème Macron still applicable in 2026?
Yes. The Cour de cassation confirmed its conformity by two full-bench rulings of 11 May 2022 (no. 21-14.490 and 21-15.247). It remains the rule for dismissal without real and serious cause.
In which cases does the scale not apply?
Where the dismissal is null and void (harassment, discrimination, infringement of a fundamental freedom). Where the employee does not seek reinstatement or reinstatement is impossible, the award cannot be lower than the salaries of the last six months (article L1235-3-1).
Does the scale award combine with the severance pay?
Yes. The award for dismissal without real and serious cause is distinct from the statutory or contractual severance pay (indemnité de licenciement), which remains due and is calculated on length of service.
Can the judge set the award freely?
No, they must stay within the range of the scale, between the floor and the ceiling matching the length of service, save in cases of nullity.
Is the scale contrary to international treaties?
The Cour de cassation held on 11 May 2022 that it conforms to ILO Convention No. 158 and that the judge cannot set it aside case by case. The European Social Charter has no direct effect according to the Court.
Does the scale apply to a rupture conventionnelle?
No. It targets only a dismissal without real and serious cause challenged before the court. In a rupture conventionnelle, the indemnity is at least equal to the statutory severance pay and is freely negotiated.
How do you estimate an award quickly?
A vertical tool like Plato crosses length of service, headcount and comparable case law to propose a sourced estimate.