Child care, paid leave, partial unemployment ... What you need to know about this new confinement

The restrictions announced Wednesday evening by Emmanuel Macron upset the organization of active parents of students.

School closures, new spring break dates ... Le Figaro answers the questions that working parents are asking for the coming weeks.

Live: LIVE - Reconfinement: partial unemployment, childcare, travel ...

Le Figaro

answers your questions

If I have to look after my children, can I go on short-time work?

Yes, one of the two parents has the possibility of making a request for partial activity to look after his child under 16 or a disabled child, without age limit, if they cannot telework.

For this, the employee must give his employer a sworn certificate indicating that he is the only one of the two parents requesting to benefit from the partial activity on the grounds of childcare.

He will then benefit from compensation up to 84% of his net salary, 100% for employees at the minimum wage, with 0 remains payable by employers, specifies the Ministry of Labor.

Employees working from home can also benefit from this device, if their professional activity is incompatible with childcare, said Elisabeth Borne.

Read also: Covid-19: what devices for parents who have to work and babysit their children?

Civil servants also have the possibility of benefiting from a special leave of absence (equivalent to partial unemployment in the private sector), the Minister of the Civil Service, Amélie de Montchalin said on Friday.

Including during the holidays?

If the employee cannot postpone his leave, has no childcare and is unable to telework, in principle, he can be placed in partial activity.

Can I postpone my vacation dates already validated?

On this point, the government calls for the "

common sense

" of employers and employees.

In principle, the notice period for modifying the dates of paid leave is one month.

On the side of the employer as well as of the employee.

But in the current situation, this delay is no longer appropriate.

The Ministry of Labor invites employers to facilitate the taking of leave for their employees who have children on the new school holiday dates (from April 10 to 26, 2021) when they had already planned their leave for later dates.

This means that for a parent in zone B (initially on vacation from April 24 to May 10), the employee can request to bring his vacation forward by 15 days;

for a parent in zone C (initially on vacation from April 17 to May 3), he can ask to bring his week forward if it was scheduled from April 25 to May 3;

for a parent in zone A (leave dates maintained from April 10 to 26), they can take their leave as planned.

Can my employer impose vacation dates on me?

For the good running of the business, yes.

The ordinance of March 25, 2020, modified by the ordinance of December 16, 2020, authorizes the employer to require his employee to take 6 days of paid leave, "

or to unilaterally modify the dates on which paid leave is taken

".

In this case, the employer has 24 hours to notify his employee.

Read also: The employers want to allow companies to negotiate a shift in paid leave

Can nannies work the next three weeks?

The answer is not yet clear.

Matignon must clarify this point definitively this Friday.

On the other hand, home guards are "

not affected

" by restrictions, according to Matignon and can therefore work and babysit.

Read also: Covid-19: back-pedaling on the issue of childcare with childminders

Can I put my nanny on partial unemployment?

Here again, the answer is not yet clear.

During the first confinement in spring 2021, childminders and child minders had benefited from the “

exceptional allowances

” system put in place for employees working for private employers.

Can I drop my children off with relatives who live more than 10 kilometers away?

Yes.

To facilitate childcare arrangements, travel between regions is authorized to bring or pick up a child or several children from a loved one.

"

After the end of the Easter weekend, interregional trips will be restricted to a few compelling reasons

", which will include "

business trips but also those linked to a family reason, such as, for example, accompanying or picking up a child from a home. parent, grandparent or loved one,

”Prime Minister Jean Castex said Thursday before the National Assembly.

What if I absolutely have to go to my place of work and cannot have my child looked after?

For professionals, such as caregivers or law enforcement officers, "

children will be welcomed in schools and extracurricular structures as in March 2020

", further clarified the Minister of Public Service, ensuring that "

all situations (would) be covered

”.