Why many people in France will ‘faire le pont’ this week

The upcoming May 1 public holiday is one of the largest and arguably most important in France. It is the only day in the working calendar classified as un jour chômé or a non-working day. 

In principle this means all but non-essential public services and those with special dispensation to remain open are closed and most workers are not allowed to work.

Owners of shops and small businesses can still work provided employees do not come in so some will do this to be open.

Others will risk a potential fine for opening as they believe the revenue generated will outweigh any penalty received.

Read more: What shops can you expect to be open on May 1 in France? 

As May 1 falls on a Thursday this year many workers are expected to faire le pont (make the bridge) and take Friday off as a paid holiday day to make a long weekend. 

This is a common occurrence in France – when a public holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, the preceding or following day is often taken off by workers to create a four-day break using only one day of paid leave.

This is because in France, public holidays are taken on the day they fall, unlike in the UK, for example, where they are often moved to the closest Monday.

On the flip side in France if the bank holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday it is ‘lost’. 

Some companies opt to give workers a day off in lieu for the missed day, but they are under no legal obligation to do so and it depends on worker contracts.

Not a right to make the bridge 

The holiday ‘bridge’ (pont) is common practice but it is not enshrined in French law. 

Companies are not obliged to accept paid holiday requests on the Monday or Friday next to a public holiday, and can refuse them under the usual circumstances. 

This means it can often be a rush for workers to request the day off early to better improve the chance of agreement.

Alternatively, some companies close their offices entirely if they believe enough people want to make the bridge, or so many people are going to be off that the business cannot run effectively. 

This is more common for private sector office workers as opposed to shops or customer-facing roles where a closure could mean a major loss of revenue on a day when more people may be out and about.

Again, this practice is not regulated and depends on company conventions and worker agreements – if the office is closed, it usually means workers take a paid holiday, or make up the time elsewhere in the year.

Such days must be worked within 12 months of the day of the closure for ‘the bridge day’, and do not relate to any additional salary increase for workers.