[COVID-19] Calculation of the indemnity and partial activity allowance for employees under the annual working-day system – Decree of 16 April 2020

Updated information, as of the date of publication of this article

The methods for calculating the indemnity and partial activity allowance for employees whose working hours are counted in days, by setting the rules for converting working days or half-days into hours, have been published in the Journal Officiel (Decree No. 2020-435 of 16 April 2020 on emergency measures for partial activity).

For employees whose working hours are fixed by a flat-rate agreement in hours or days over the year, the indemnity and the partial activity allowance shall be determined taking into account the number of hours or days or half-days, as the case may be, not worked by the employee in respect of the period of authorized partial activity, converted into hours in accordance with the following procedures:

• – A half day not worked corresponds to 3.5 hours not worked;
• – A day not worked corresponds to 7 hours not worked;
• – A non-worked week corresponds to 35 hours not worked.

Days of paid leave and rest taken during the period provided for in the first subparagraph and public holidays not worked which correspond to working days shall, where appropriate, be converted into hours in the manner provided for in the first subparagraph. The hours resulting from this conversion shall be deducted from the number of hours not worked calculated in accordance with the abovementioned rules. The number of hours giving rise to payment of the allowance and partial activity allowance may not exceed the legal working time (35 hours per week) for the period in question.

In the case of employees who receive variable remuneration components or remuneration paid on a non-monthly basis, in particular those provided for in Article 1, the reference salary used to calculate the indemnity and the partial activity allowance shall also take account of the average of the variable remuneration components. With the exception of professional expenses and the elements mentioned below, received during the 12 calendar months, or over the totality of the months worked if the employee has worked less than 12 calendar months, preceding the first day on which the partial activity allowance is paid.

The following shall not be taken into account in the basis for calculating the indemnity and the partial activity allowance:

• – Amounts representing business expenses
• – Remuneration elements which, although considered a salary, are not the counterpart of actual work or are not affected by the reduction or absence of activity and are allocated for the year.

Where remuneration includes a fraction of remuneration corresponding to the payment of holiday pay, that fraction shall be deducted in order to determine the basis for calculating the indemnity and the partial activity allowance, without prejudice to the payment by the employer of holiday pay.

The provisions of the decree are applicable to claims for partial activity compensation addressed to the Services and Payment Agency pursuant to Article R. 5122-5 of the French Labour Code for the placement of employees into partial activity from 12 March 2020 due to the Covid-19 epidemic until 31 December 2020.