SOCIOOCCUPATIONAL CHANGES IN FRENCH LOCAL ITIES BETWEEN 1982 AND 1990

Socio-occupational profiles of communes in 1990 are compared with thos e in 1982. in the first part of this article, a multi-dimensional anal ysis is used to identify major trends and compare them with the situat ion in 1982. Was increasing affluence limited to communes that were al ready wealthy? Is the increase in tertiary occupations confined to com munes where tertiary occupations were already concentrated? In the sec ond part of the article the usual territorial categories - regions, ci ty/suburban, large towns - are used to locate these trends geographica lly. Topics considered are: shift of technological activities to subur ban areas and the West, and of handicrafts and service occupations tow ards central areas, reductions in skilled occupations in industrial ar eas, clear improvements in standards of living in areas which were alr eady affluent in 1982.