Skip to main content
Being a socially engaged company

Supporting France's Military Reserve

Thales supports France’s national defence interests by encouraging the 200 Thales employees who are military reservists. 

The company releases reservists to join their units for up to 20 days a year on full pay, instead of the eight days a year required by French law.

Thales is proud of the reservists in its workforce, and of their commitment to serving the country.


Proud to serve

We encourage Thales reservists to promote defence issues on a day-to-day level, and to raise awareness of the nation's history within the company, in particular by taking part in commemoration ceremonies.


Supporting reservists

Military reservists in France provide important reinforcements for regular army units, helping to protect the population when the national security alert level is raised.

Thales is proud of the reservists in its workforce, and of their commitment to serving the country. The Group does everything it can to support them in their dual role as reservists – civilians at Thales, and military personnel with the armed forces. 

In France, an agreement between the French Ministry for the Armed Forces and Thales to support military reserve policy, originally signed in 2006 and renewed by Patrice Caine in October 2017, makes provision for the following: 

  • Release of reservists for 20 working days each year.
  • Release for 10 additional working days in the event of operations to reinforce homeland security. 
  • Reservists continue to receive full pay on release days. 
  • Reduced notice period for informing employers of upcoming military activity

Provisions are in place for special social security protection/coverage, with continued Humanis health coverage during reserve periods, and AGPM group insurance (revised in 2017) also covering reserve periods. Arrangements can additionally be put in place on a case-by- case basis in the event of long-term operations (suspension of contract, advance on salary pending military pay, continuation of Humanis coverage, etc.).

" The initiative between Thales and the French Ministry for the Armed Forces represents a great continuous civic commitment on the part of our CEO, supported by our Thales HR teams since 2006, and renewed once again by Patrice Caine in 2017. Our French reservist colleagues are 200% motivated for Thales and their military activities. This is a very exciting human adventure for the men and women of all military and Thales “ranks”, across all the armed forces (land forces, naval forces, the air force, and the National Gendarmerie), contributing to the sharing of knowledge between Thales and the armed forces, supporting the defence and security of France and the world, and reflecting Thales’s values in a positive manner: Building a future we can all trust! "
Laurent de La Burgade , Chairman of the Thales French Reservists’ Club, Frigate Captain (reservist), and Trade Compliance Director at Thales’s DMS GBU.