Do everything to put France back to work and avoid an overly massive slowdown in activity. Less than three days after his allocation announcing the containment of the population, the President of the Republic sounded the recall of the economic troops. Emmanuel Macron calls for " the civic responsibility of companies to continue their activity when possible " and underlines " the importance for employees of companies who have complied with health rules to go to work on production sites "
Read also: Coronavirus: the answers to the 20 questions asked by employees and entrepreneurs
After the closure of restaurants and non-food shops announced on Saturday, the general confinement with fines and the call to telework for as many white-collar workers as possible have caused confusion in the industry, in services, but also in administration and law enforcement.
What about blue-collar workers and company employees whose activity is not prohibited? What are the "essential" sectors authorized to continue their activity? " It's the big blur, it seems to receive contradictory messages from the executive, between the speech of Emmanuel Macron Monday evening, Bruno Le Maire who calls to work and Olivier Véran to limit himself to essential activities " , assures Richard Thiriet, president of CNI, a Nantes-based SME in metal custom-made with a hundred employees.
Tuesday, in Essonne, employees of Smurfit Kappa (food packaging) were prevented from going to their factory by the police: they considered that their activity was not essential. "For 24 hours, certain instructions may have been overinterpreted ," admits a minister. But Christophe Castaner rectified the situation Tuesday evening. "The Minister of the Interior's telegram specifies that" the restrictive measures must not lead to dissuading our fellow citizens from continuing their activity, except for traders affected by opening decisions. Industrial establishments, warehouses, wholesale markets are authorized to operate in compliance with the health rules in force. "
Read also: Faced with coronavirus, is the exercise of the right of withdrawal always justified?
Many leaders, including in sensitive sectors, complain of a finicky administration, which obstructs their functioning? " An interministerial crisis cell has been set up to remedy it ", underlines the Elysee.
Most importantly, the executive wants to challenge the idea that only those sectors deemed "essential" would be allowed to continue their activity. " In fact, there is no non-essential sector," sums up a minister. There are sectors where there are no orders, and others where there are orders. For these, if the activity is not explicitly prohibited, there is no reason to stop the activity. The only requirement: compliance with strict sanitary measures. The government has asked professional branches to issue a guide to good practice. His model? The one sent by the UIMM (metallurgy) to its members.
Overcome fear of the virus
Objective: to overcome the fear of the virus, heightened by the government's speech and the shortage of masks. " In factories, it is enough that the employees are as far apart as possible from each other, reassures a minister. We never said that corporate restaurants should stay closed. The most important thing is to break the promiscuity. "The stoppages of auto factories and luxury leather goods are not considered abusive." If you have no more orders, it's normal to stop production, "we recognize at Bercy.
On the other hand, the decision of construction companies to stop construction sites is frowned upon by the government. “ Some people choose this comfort solution because the situation is complicated, according to an observer in this file. But this is often not the case for the small construction industry players, who accuse the larger ones of wanting to sink them… ”
A plumber must be able to recover a toilet flush from their usual wholesaler. It's no more dangerous than buying a steak in a butcher's shop
Philippe Villin, business bankerA concern for continuity shared by a number of employers. " In the interest of our fellow citizens, industrial activity must restart next week, otherwise we are going towards an economic and social disaster " , warns Hubert Mongon, general delegate of the UIMM (professional federation of metallurgy) . Beyond the sensitive sectors, a large part of the activity is threatened.
" We have to make sure that wholesalers of all kinds can supply businesses, in particular craft businesses, for what they need with limited contacts such as in food distribution," assures investment banker Philippe Villin. A plumber must be able to recover a toilet flush from their usual wholesaler. It is no more dangerous than buying a steak from a butcher shop. "
The goodwill of employers is likely to come up against the growing gap between teleworkers and those who remain at their usual post, in complicated conditions, sometimes without recognition or awareness of their role in this key period for the future of the country. " Road carrier, like nurse, saves lives, " says minister
