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Vocabulary
Objective: Describe the stages of employment in a French company, discuss recruitment and contracts, and apply workplace terms in professional contexts.
| French | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| un CDI | an open-ended contract | the standard permanent contract |
| un CDD | a fixed-term contract | used for temporary positions |
| un stage | an internship | for students or recent graduates |
| un intérim | a temp assignment | through a staffing agency |
| un poste | a position | a specific job within a company |
| un salarié | an employee | a wage earner on a payroll |
| un indépendant | a self-employed worker | not on the company payroll |
| un cadre | an executive | a senior-salaried status |
The verb postuler takes dans before a company or à before a position, but never pour with a company.
Salarié describes an employee on a payroll, while indépendant describes a self-employed worker. The two statuses are mutually exclusive.
Postuler takes the preposition dans before a company. The verb is followed by the company name, not by a job title.
A CDI is an open-ended contract, and the période d'essai is the trial period that precedes confirmation.
Candidature is the standard word for an application. The noun poste names the specific job being filled.
Promotion and augmentation often appear together, since a higher position usually carries a higher salary.
Démissionner is the verb for resigning voluntarily. It is distinct from être licencié, which means to be dismissed.
7 exercises · about 11 minutes
A CDI is an open-ended contract, while a CDD is fixed-term and legally limited in duration. A five-year commitment corresponds to a CDI.
Salarié is the standard term in contracts and HR documents, while employé is more general and appears in everyday speech.
A plan de licenciement is a formal redundancy scheme. The phrase appears in French business news whenever a company restructures.
Cadre supérieur is the masculine form; the feminine form is cadre supérieure, with the adjective taking the feminine ending -e.
Prendre sa retraite is the standard expression for retiring. The age of retirement in France varies with the year of birth.