Row over work on bank holiday

THE “solidarity day” concept applied to this week’s bank holiday Monday has stirred up controversy again.

The concept of people having to work without pay has been questioned, as has the use that money raised by this is put to.

Lundi de Pentecôte (Whit Monday) was decreed in 2004 to no longer be a normal bank holiday in France, but just a symbolic one, that would be worked with no pay, with money raised going to benefit the elderly and vulnerable. This followed deaths in a heat wave the year before.

This was partially changed in 2008. The day is now a bank holiday again for those firms wanting to retain it as one. However where it is taken, the equivalent of a day’s work should be given up by staff either on another bank holiday, by giving up rights to “RTT” (time off due to overtime), or by working seven extra hours spread out over other days.

In return for not paying the staff that day, employers have to pay a sum equivalent to 0.3% of their gross annual salary budget to the government (equivalent to the salaries for the unpaid day).

Last year’s day raised €2.33 billion according to the CNSA, a state body charged with collecting it. It has said it gave €1.4 billion for care of dependent elderly people and the rest for the disabled, notably for modernisation of retirement homes or for disability centres.

However a body representing heads of retirement homes, AD-PA, claims that last year €500 million was “not spent as planned”, leading to consequences including job losses.

The government admitted recently to not spending €225 million of the money last year because of “delays in creating new places” in homes.

One of the large unions, CFTC, has also hit out at the whole concept, saying there is no justification to making employees work an extra day. It has written to the new work minister asking for him to review the idea.

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