Assemblée nationale

The National Assembly is the heart of French democracy. 577 deputies are elected every five years to represent the French people, legislate and control the action of the Government. Three main categories of staff work in their service: civil servants, parliamentary staff and those of political groups. The civil servants of the National Assembly, numbering around 1,300, are recruited by competitive examination and work in a wide variety of professions. In compliance with the principle of separation of powers, their autonomous status is determined by the Bureau of the Assembly. Civil servants are assigned either to the legislative services, where they assist the deputies in their role as legislators and their mission to oversee government activity, or to the administrative services, where they contribute to the day-to-day running of the institution and manage the material resources made available to Members. Subject to obligations of reserve, professional discretion and political neutrality, these parliamentary officials must show great availability, in particular because of the constraints linked to public sittings and the work of the committees. Parliamentary assistants are directly recruited by the deputies under private law contracts: the deputies have the status of employers who recruit, dismiss, set the working conditions and the salary of these collaborators. It is also the deputies who, according to their needs, set the professional missions of their assistants. Several university courses, generally at master's level, prepare for the profession of parliamentary collaborator. The employees of the political groups are recruited by them according to organizational procedures specific to each group under private law contracts.