“The RGCU, a gigantic database on professional careers designed by the CNAV, promises to become a valuable source for researchers.”
Extract from Courrier des statistiques N°6 – 2021 with an article by Christian Sureau, director of the RGCU programme, and Richard Merlen, director of the RGCU programme for the general scheme of the Caisse nationale d’assurance vieillesse (CNAV).
Indeed, 80 million insured persons and 7 billion pieces of information are contained in the information system of the Répertoire de gestion des carrières unique (RGCU), which has been in production since 2019 and which should eventually cover the careers of insured persons in all French pension schemes. The RGCU currently contains the detailed careers of private-sector employees, the special scheme for notary clerks and employees, and religious professions. Designed to improve pension management, it is also a very rich source of information for researchers and data scientists, particularly thanks to its longitudinal dimension.
The RGCU reconstructs the whole of the insured person’s career, including periods of unemployment or illness giving rise to contributions. This career is completed by periods of non-activity (not giving rise to contributions), allowing continuous monitoring until retirement.
The Caisse nationale d’assurance vieillesse (CNAV) and the Direction de la sécurité sociale (DSS) of the Ministère des Solidarités et de la Santé have decided to make these data available to researchers from the CASD. This access will be effective at the beginning of next year.
