Special Covid-19 work stoppage: what you need to know

Announced by the Prime Minister, Jean Castex, during his press conference on January 7, the special Covid-19 work stoppage entered into force this Sunday January 10, until March 31 minimum.

A sick leave device has been created for people with symptoms suggestive of Covid-19 and who need a sick leave because they are unable to telecommute. This is available “without a waiting period or entitlement condition and does not require a visit to the doctor upstream.” Its purpose is to break the chains of contamination by promoting the isolation of suspected cases of Covid-19. “Health insurance will systematically follow up with 2 to 3 phone calls over 7 days,” the Prime Minister said. All you have to do is request it on the Ameli.fr site and get tested within 48 hours. It is also mandatory to provide the date, time and place of the appointment for this screening. The sick leave will only be validated once the result has been sent to health insurance. If it is negative, the work stoppage is interrupted but if it is positive, it is prolonged.

“The French are very aware of the stakes which seek to isolate themselves from the onset of the first symptoms. Our duty is to lift all brakes so that they respect this principle, which implies responding to fears relating to the consequences on their remuneration. This is the whole purpose of this measure, ”said Minister of Solidarity and Health Olivier Véran. This work stoppage is aimed at all employees, whether from the public or private sector, as soon as it is a “contact case” of a person who has contracted the coronavirus.

This Monday, at the beginning of the afternoon, health insurance claimed to have already received 2,500 requests for immediate work stoppage. In a press release dated January 8, the CPME (Confederation of SMEs) is concerned about possible abuses. “The CPME is worried about the possible consequences of this announcement, which amounts to establishing the automatic nature of the work stoppage in the event of suspected symptoms, without any medical check-up or prior test. However, among the symptoms likely to reveal a Covid-19 infection, some are fortunately mild and unrelated to the pandemic. Such a provision would be likely to lead to a very sharp increase in sick leaves and would open the door to uncontrolled absenteeism which could disrupt companies ”.