PARIS (AFX) - Employment in France's private and semi-private sectors rose 3.6 pct in 2000, with some 520,000 new jobs created, the largest increase in 30 years, according to provisional figures released by the Ministry of Labour.
About 56,300 new jobs were created in the construction sector, up 4.8 pct, while 390,900 posts were created in the service sector, an increase of 4.3 pct.
For industries, 70,200 new posts were created, up 1.7 pct.
Salaries in the private and semi-private sector increased 5 pct last year, based on the SHBO index of hourly earnings.
"The progression of employment has never been so strong in France, even in years when growth was significantly above that seen in 2000," said Elisabeth Guigou, France's labour minister.