This is one of the avenues put forward by the government to promote recovery and avoid seeing a large number of employees go on vacation at the precise moment when companies will need them the most.
Tabled in Parliament, the bill relating to the exit from the state of health emergency, aimed at organizing the period extending from June to the end of 2021, notably provides for several measures concerning the days of public holidays. workers.
Read also: Élisabeth Borne wants to make compulsory holidays a little more flexible
At the start of the health crisis, an ordinance dating from March 2020 came to relax the conditions under which an employer can "
decide to take paid vacation days acquired by an employee
" or "
unilaterally modify the dates for taking rest days.
". Capped at six days of leave, this possibility can be implemented in the field subject to a collective agreement in the company or the branch. A notice period of at least one day must also be respected so that the employee can adapt.
The idea of the ordinance was to enable companies to deal with the “
economic, financial and social consequences of the spread of covid-19
”.
Contested, this measure had been extended several times.
It should in theory be extinguished on June 30 next.
Nevertheless, article 6 of the bill relating to the exit from the state of health emergency provides for a further extension of this device, until “
October 31, 2021
”.
In addition, the executive also wants to increase the number of days of leave concerned, from six to eight.
Objective: "to
enable companies to organize themselves in the face of the scale and the prolongation of the health crisis
".
Battle in sight in the National Assembly
Strongly criticized by the unions, who recall that employees are the first penalized by the economic consequences of the health crisis, this provision was however validated, Thursday, by the Council of State. In its opinion on the bill, the institution underlines that its implementation "
is subject to a prior collective agreement
" and considers that its effects are "
justified by a reason of sufficient general interest
". In addition, the measure “
does not disregard any other constitutional or conventional requirement
”. In other words, if the potion can be bitter for some employees, the situation demands it.
The fact remains that this device may also be challenged in Parliament, in particular on the left. Several amendments have already been tabled in the Law Committee to request its deletion. Denouncing “
anti-social
”
measures
, the rebellious France deputies thus say they refuse “
that the health situation be a pretext for cutting back the social rights of workers
”. The same goes for the non-registered Marie-France Lorho, who attacks the “
exorbitant prerogatives of the executive
”. Likewise, two deputies from the Freedom and Territory group, Paul Molac and Jean-Félix Acquaviva, consider that "
the exceptional measures to infringe the rights of employees taken in the context of the start of the Covid crisis and the first confinement do not need to be extended until a horizon as distant as October 31, and even less be aggravated
”.
Likewise, the social partners are far from being convinced.
“
Why go to 8 days?
It does not go with the idea of the recovery ”
, was surprised the boss of the CFTC, Cyril Chabanier, in our columns.
There is therefore still some way to go before convincing the various players of the merits of the measure.