Cashiers, salespeople, home helpers … In order to encourage employers to improve the situation of “second line workers”, highlighted during the crisis linked to Covid-19, the Prime Minister, Jean Castex, had announced the renewal in a new form of the exceptional purchasing power bonus, at the end of the third social dialogue conference on March 15. The contours of this new version of the “Macron premium” have been specified by the 2021 amending finance bill, presented to the Council of Ministers on June 2.
This is a tax benefit in the form of exemption from charges granted to employers who choose to pay a premium. Set up in 2019 following the “yellow vests” crisis, the bonus was extended in 2020 to encourage employers to reward employees who continue to work during the Covid-19 health crisis. It is also exempt from taxes.
As in the previous year, employers who decide to allocate it to their employees are exempt from social security contributions on the amount of the premium, up to 1,000 euros for employees whose remuneration does not exceed three minimum wages out of the twelve. month preceding its payment. And this, whether or not they are considered second-line workers.
Negotiations by company or branch
The exemption threshold is raised to 2,000 euros if the employer has entered into a profit-sharing agreement before the date of payment of the bonus, even if this agreement was entered into years before. The novelty of the 2021 edition of the Macron bonus lies on this point: employers engaged in “steps” to promote second-line workers will also be able to pay their employees a bonus exempt from social and tax deductions up to to 2,000 euros.
The bill specifies that it is first a question of identifying the employees concerned; those who, “Due to the nature of their tasks, have directly contributed to the continuity of economic activity and the maintenance of social cohesion, and whose activity was carried out, in 2020 or 2021, solely or mainly on site for periods of health emergency “.
In order to improve the working conditions of these employees, often women, exercising difficult and poorly paid jobs, the company or the branch must then open negotiations with a view to an agreement covering at least two of these five themes. : remuneration and classification of this category of employees (in particular with regard to the objective of professional equality between women and men), nature of the employment contract, health and safety at work, working time and relationship between professional life and personal, vocational training.
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