By dint of discussions, negotiations and lobbying, restaurateurs obtain accommodations.
The Prime Minister, Jean Castex, announced this Wednesday, July 21 during his interview in the 1 p.m. newspaper on TF1, that they will not have to verify the identity of their customers during the control of the health pass at the entrance to their establishment.
It will be the police who will carry out these operations, randomly.
On the other hand, the other establishments receiving the public concerned by the bill on the extension of the sanitary pass (cinemas, aquariums, amusement parks ...), should continue to verify the identity of their customers, explains one to Bercy, “because they have a counter” making it easier to carry out checks.
The two major catering unions, the Umih and the GNI, had brought this request for flexibility during a meeting in Bercy, chaired by Bruno Le Maire, Minister of the Economy, and Alain Griset, Minister responsible for SMEs. , this Tuesday at the end of the afternoon.
The question was decided by the Prime Minister and the President of the Republic Emmanuel Macron this Wednesday morning, during the Defense Council.
"It was legitimate, it's a question of common sense and pragmatism," we support at Bercy.
"We don't want to play a police role"
Restaurant owners say they are "satisfied" to have been heard.
“We don't want to play a police role, since we don't have the power!
»We insist to the leadership of the GNI.
“It is obvious that the health pass is useful, continues Hubert Jan, catering manager at Umih, but we must not take the place of the State, which must ensure that the law is respected.
"
Problem, an unvaccinated and negative test less than 48 hours could "borrow" a third party health pass to enter a bar or restaurant, or use a fake. “Let’s stop highlighting minorities! Let us trust the French, one gets annoyed at Bercy. A conservator is able to recognize a photocopy or if someone is laughing at him. We are sure that the French will be proud to be vaccinated, and that they will show their identity papers themselves. "
Restaurant owners do not deny the possibility of fraud, but remind their customers of their responsibilities.
" Nobody is supposed to ignore the law !
»We say at the GNI.
“Some will try to cheat, up to the State to punish them, abounds Hubert Jan.
We are still awaiting further adjustments.
Controls are only one part of our demands.
"
The hope of additional time for the application to employees
Restaurant owners remain, among other things, braced on the sanitary pass on the terrace, which they demand to be abandoned.
If the government has not granted them this favor, parliamentarians should play a decisive role.
In the National Assembly, all the parliamentary groups tabled an amendment to this effect.
The unions are "very hopeful" of seeing their wish granted and say they have confidence "in their MP friends".
Finally, the profession is still hoping for additional time to apply the health pass to employees.
A claim that representatives of shopping centers also carry.
For now, it is expected that employees of establishments receiving the public affected by the bill will have to present a valid pass by August 30, under penalty of being suspended for two months without receiving a salary.
Read also Health pass: restaurateurs refuse to bear legal risks
Here again, discussions with the Ministry of Labor could lead to more flexibility. "If an employee is engaged in a vaccination course at the end of August, it seems hard enough to suspend or fire him immediately," says a government source. On this point too, it will be a matter of common sense. In the Assembly, an amendment tabled by the deputies provides that employees can ask for RTT or be assigned to a post without contact with the public while waiting to obtain their health pass. "We let parliamentarians work," the government commented. We will see the final version of the law. "
