France: Creation of the “Reduced Activity for Job Preservation” System

The Senate passed the bill on various provisions relating to the COVID-19 health crisis, as well as other urgent measures, and also the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union. This law provides for the creation of a specific partial activity scheme; “Reduced Activity for Job Preservation”. In short, this system will enable companies to reduce working hours, while maintaining a certain percentage of the employee’s remuneration for hours off work, and be reimbursed by the State in exchange for a commitment to maintain employment. This scheme will be available until 30 June 2022. The scheme will apply to companies faced with a lasting reduction in activity that is not likely to jeopardise their survival. To benefit from this measure, the company must:

• either conclude a collective agreement to this effect, at the level of the site, the company or the group;
• or draw up a unilateral document after consulting the CSE (Works Council).
  • CAUTION: in this case, the company must also be covered by an extended branch agreement providing for recourse to this mechanism.

The agreement or unilateral document must include specific commitments in terms of employment. In addition, the employer’s agreement or document must be validated by the administration.

Flichy Grangé Avocats is there to assist you in the implementation of these new measures. For more information, please visit www.flichygrange.com or contact comfga@flichy.com.

For more information please contact Joseph Granato, Communications Manager at L&E Global at joseph.granato@leglobal.org.