NewsletterNewsletter No. 212 – August 2026
SHORT-TIME WORKING SCHEME: In response to the wildfires that occurred in the Gironde, Landes and Var départements, the Government has adapted the short-time working scheme.
Following the wildfires that affected the Gironde, Landes and Var départements during the summer, the Ministry of Labour has extended eligibility for the short-time working scheme to affected businesses in three situations: businesses that have either suffered direct damage or are located in an evacuated area or an area subject to restrictions imposed by the prefect, businesses affected by health recommendations making it impossible for them to operate, and businesses experiencing a decrease in activity of at least 30% compared with the previous year without being located in a disaster area. The ordinary compensation scheme continues to apply, except for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 250 employees located in the listed disaster-stricken municipalities, which will benefit, between 20 July and 30 August 2026, from exceptional support funded exclusively by the State, raising the allowance to 60% and ensuring that the employer bears no residual cost. This measure is specified by a decree, which entrusts the prefect with granting the support and the Agence de services et de paiement (ASP) with disbursing it. Finally, the processing time has been shortened, with a target response time of five working days (Decree No. 2026-776 of 14 August 2026, Official Journal of 15 August).
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH: The Law of 27 July 2026 extends the remit of occupational health and prevention services to combating cardiovascular and neurological diseases.
Published in the Official Journal on 28 July 2026 and entering into force the following day, Law No. 2026-668 establishing a national strategy to combat cardiovascular and neurological diseases in France contains provisions relating to employment law. This Law amends Article L. 4622-2 of the French Labour Code to assign occupational health and prevention services (SPST) a new task. They will now be required to “screen for cardiovascular and neurological diseases” and to conduct annual awareness-raising initiatives for employees concerning the main risk factors. In addition, the Law also expands the content of the mid-career medical examination by adding two further requirements: raising the worker’s awareness of cardiovascular and neurological risk factors and offering the worker early screening (Law No. 2026-668 of 27 July 2026, Official Journal).
WORKING TIME: A decree harmonises the time limits for the administration to respond to applications for exemptions from working-time rules.
Decree No. 2026-775 of 13 August 2026, which entered into force on 16 August 2026, harmonises to 30 days the time limit within which the administration must respond to applications for exemptions from working-time rules, whether concerning exceeding the statutory maximum weekly working time, the introduction of individualised working schedules, or night work by young workers and apprentices. This time limit, which replaces previously differing periods ranging in particular from one to two months depending on the procedure, is in line with the principle set out in Article 21 of the Law of 12 April 2000, under which “silence maintained for two months by the administrative authority on a request constitutes a decision granting it”, subject to an exceptional exemption granted by the Conseil d’État (the French Administrative Supreme Court). Accordingly, in the absence of a response within this time limit, calculated from receipt of the employer’s request, the administration’s silence will now constitute tacit approval in these four procedures (Decree No. 2026-775 of 13 August 2026, Official Journal).
LABOUR COURT: The procedure for bringing a claim before the Labour Court has been simplified.
Until now, Article R. 1452-2 of the French Labour Code required the claimant to attach to their application all documents on which they intended to rely in support of their claims, which could result in a large number of documents being submitted to the court registry when the proceedings were initiated. Decree No. 2026-683 of 27 July 2026, applicable to proceedings initiated on or after 1 October 2026, relaxes this requirement as part of the move towards digitalisation of the procedure. Claimants will no longer be required to submit their supporting documents when filing their application. Two obligations remain, however: a schedule listing the documents relied upon must be attached, and a new requirement introduced by the decree provides that “the application must also be accompanied by the most recent payslip relating to the dispute or by any document enabling the employer’s business activity to be determined”. This simplification does not affect the obligation for the parties to exchange their supporting documents, but it postpones the initial submission of those documents to the court registry (Decree No. 2026-683 of 27 July 2026, Official Journal).
ABSENCES AND LEAVE: The status of employees holding local elected office is enhanced with new rights to authorised absence, set out in two decrees.
Two decrees published in the Official Journal of 19 August, issued to implement the Law of 22 December 2025 establishing a status for local elected officials, extend the authorised absences available to employees serving as municipal elected officials. The first, dated 17 August 2026, allows elected officials to take time off both to participate in national commemorations, celebrations and national days, and to implement the safety measures prescribed by the mayor in response to a serious and imminent danger. Employers must then “grant elected officials […] the time necessary to perform their duties”. In such cases, the elected official must notify their employer without delay and subsequently confirm their absence in writing within 48 hours. The second decree, dated 18 August 2026, sets out the official list of the national commemorations and national days concerned, including dates specific to France’s overseas territories relating to the abolition of slavery. Finally, an elected official who does not receive an allowance for the performance of their duties (indemnité de fonction) may be entitled to financial compensation, provided they can demonstrate a loss of remuneration resulting from these absences (Decree No. 2026-800 of 17 August 2026, Official Journal and Decree No. 2026-801 of 18 August 2026, Official Journal).
PAYROLL: In response to rising fuel prices, the social security treatment of the transport allowance is expected to be relaxed in 2026.
On 6 August 2026, the Government announced that the social security treatment of the transport allowance, or fuel allowance, would shortly be amended by decree, for 2026 only. In response to rising fuel prices, the amount exempt from social security contributions, the CSG (general social contribution) and the CRDS (social security debt repayment contribution) will be increased from €300 to €600 per employee per year and set by ministerial order. Two conditions currently applicable will also be suspended until 31 December 2026: the requirement for the employee to live or work in an area poorly served by public transport, and the prohibition on combining the allowance with reimbursement of public transport season tickets. Pending publication of the relevant legislation, the administration is allowing employers to anticipate these changes in their 2026 payroll and social security filings (Official Social Security Bulletin notice of 6 August 2026).