Covid 19 - Adaptation of the short time work program (Decree dated 16 April 2020) | Fieldfisher
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Covid 19 - Adaptation of the short time work program (Decree dated 16 April 2020)

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France

A Decree n°2020-435 dated 16 April 2020 and published on 17 April 2020, sets the rules to calculate the indemnity and allowance for the short-time work for the employees whose working time is computed in days or hours over the year. The Decree also sets the rules applicable to specific employees such as the navigating employees of the civil aviation, freelance journalists, salespersons working under the VRP status, home-based employees, employees paid per task, artists, model,  employees of live stage and recorded entertainment activities.   

Please find below a summary of the provisions of this new Decree.

1.    Specific rules depending on the situation of the employees
 
  • Employees under a lump-sum working time arrangement computed in days or hours over the year (forfait jours) 
For these employees, the indemnity and allowance for short-time work is calculated by taking into account the number of hours, days or, if applicable, half-days not worked by the employee during the short-time work period, as follows :

-    A half-day not worked is equal to 3,5 hours not worked ;
-    A day not worked is equal to 7 hours not worked ;
-    A week not worked is equal to 35 hours not worked.

The days of paid leave and the rest days taken during the short-time period as well as the bank holidays corresponding to a working day (from Monday to Friday) are converted into hours in accordance with the above mentioned rules. Those hours shall be deducted from the number of hours not worked under the short-time work scheme. 

It is specified that the number of hours giving rise to the payment of the indemnity and allowance for short-time work may not exceed 35 hours per week.
 
  • VRP salespersons 
For the VRP salespersons who do benefit from an organisation of the working time as applicable within the company, the indemnity and the allowance for short-time period are calculated as follows :  

a.    The reference average remuneration used to calculate the indemnity and allowance for short-time work corresponds to the average gross remuneration received over the last 12 calendar months or over all the calendar months worked by the employee if he/she has worked less than 12 months, preceding the first day of short-time work within the company or establishment. The professional expenses and the amonts that do not compensate an effective work or are not impacted by the reduction or absence of activity and are granted on an annual basis are not taken into account ;
b.    The hourly amount that is used for the calculation of the indemnity and allowance for short-time work is defined by dividing the monthly reference remuneration by the legal duration of working time ;
c.    The loss of remuneration related to the short-time period equals to the difference between the monthly reference remuneration and the monthly remuneration effectively received during the short-time work period ; 
d.    The number of hours not worked that could be indemnified corresponds to the difference of remuneration mentioned in c. divided by the hourly amount define at b. 

The number of hours giving rise to the payment of the indemnity and allowance for short-time work may not exceed 35 hours per week.

2.    General rules

For employees who benefit from a variable remuneration or a remuneration paid on a non-monthly basis, the reference remuneration used to calculate the indemnity and allowance for short-time work includes the average variable remuneration received over the 12 calendar months preceding the first day of short-time work or over all the calendar months if the employee has worked less than 12 calendar months.  

The professional expenses and the amounts that do not compensate an effective work or are not impacted by the reduction or absence of activity and are granted on an annual basis, are excluded from the base of calculation of the indemnity and allowance for short-time work. 

When the remuneration includes a part of remuneration corresponding to the payment of paid leaves, that part is excluded for the determination of the base used to calculate the indemnity and allowance for short-time work.

3.    Scope

The new provisions apply to the short-time work requests sent to the administration because of the Covid-19 between 12 March 2020 and 31 December 2020.

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