Now is the time for exegesis. What is an essential sector of activity whose employees would therefore be expected whatever happens on their workstation? The parliamentary group Les Républicains formulates a question in this regard which tends to come back again and again: “What companies are essential to the functioning of the country?” Almost identical wording of the National Council of the Order of Architects for Edouard Philippe: “We are asking you, Mr. Prime Minister, for clear explanations capable of meeting the expectations of two million workers.”
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But it will still be necessary to wait for precise answers. “No question of drawing up precise lists, we would risk forgetting trades”, it is said in the entourage of the Minister of Economy, Bruno Le Maire. While recalling that “Sectors such as drinking water, electricity, IT and telecoms networks and transportation are among the essential activities.” Companies are therefore dismissed by the executive to “Their sense of responsibility”, at the same time that the CGT announces a first death in the trade sector and “Calls on all employees to exercise their right of withdrawal when they fear for their health”.
Modus vivendi
The answers to questions posed by employers and employees alike could be provided on a case-by-case basis in the light of agreements between government and professional organizations. Thus, the FO road transport federation lifted its appeal for the right of withdrawal this Sunday. After discussions with the Ministry of Transport, during this weekend, a modus vivendi was found around the reopening of the car parks on the highways and the cleaning of the toilets. In addition, the ban on making drivers pay for showers has also been adopted.
In the building, three professional federations and the Ministry of the Ecological Transition found common ground for “Strengthen business continuity […] and the continuation of construction sites ”. First of all, the essential rules for the protection of construction workers will be recalled in a guide to good practice. “This guide will be presented this Monday to the Ministry of Labor for validation, specifies Patrick Liébus president of the Confederation of the small companies of the building (Capeb). He will in particular recall the three compulsory protective measures: wearing glasses, gloves and a mask. ” Emergency interventions on faulty boilers or blocked elevators should be given priority.
A certainty, it seems, in this flood of questions, the prohibition for apprentices to enter places where work takes place: “It is out of the question to have apprentices present on the construction sites and if the government does not take a position on this question, it will bear the responsibility”, warns the president of Capeb.
Franck Bouaziz
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