The article looks at why people apply for public sector jobs in France. They found that when more people are unemployed, more people apply for these jobs. Women and low-skilled workers are more likely to apply when unemployment is high. Men and white-collar workers are more interested when the pay is better. The study used data from 1980 to 2000 to show how economic conditions affect job applications. They also looked at individual data to see how personal factors like wages and unemployment risk influence the decision to apply for public sector jobs.