The government does not plan at this stage to strengthen the rules on teleworking in the face of the fifth wave of the Covid-19 epidemic, the Ministry of Labor said Thursday. “We do not plan today to strengthen the rules on teleworking”, said the ministry, arguing that “the situation is not the same as last spring”, with “today 90% of adults who are vaccinated ”. The ministry also highlights the “strict health protocol that applies in companies, with the wearing of the mask compulsory in all closed and shared work spaces as well as the respect of barrier gestures”.
In an interview with Opinion.fr, the Minister of Labor, Elisabeth Borne, spoke on Thursday of a “demanding” protocol, deploring “a certain relaxation in recent months, particularly on the wearing of a mask”. “Everyone must get back on track,” she insisted, adding that labor inspection controls would be strengthened on compliance with the protocol.
A protocol amended several times
Since September, this reference document to ensure the health and safety of employees and the pursuit of economic activity in the face of Covid-19 no longer provides for a minimum day of teleworking. It provides that “employers shall set, within the framework of local social dialogue, the methods of recourse” to teleworking. Adjusted several times, the protocol had in particular imposed for several months teleworking as a rule from October 2020 specifying that it should be “increased to 100% for employees who can perform all of their tasks remotely” .
According to the latest data from the Directorate of Research, Studies and Statistics (Dares), 21% of employees were at least one day teleworked during the month of September. Only 8% of employees concerned by telework have teleworked every day of the week (ie 2% of all employees). Companies that require at least one day of teleworking per week now represent only 10% of employees (after 19% at the end of August).