Chronic. Counting down working hours, then limiting them, has been a constant struggle of the humanists, then of the unions. Article 2 of the law of 1841, following the Villerme report on child labor, stated as follows: “Children must be at least 8 years old to be admitted. From 8 to 12 years old, they may not be employed at actual work for more than eight hours a day, divided by a rest period. From 12 to 16 years of age, they may not be employed at actual work for more than twelve hours a day, divided by rest. This work can only take place from 5 am to 9 pm. “
Almost two centuries later, from the minimum wage to the physical time clock, the hour remains consecrated as the elementary unit of work. Economic statistics are also based on this unit: hourly productivity, hourly labor cost, etc. The current desire of the French government to impose on local authorities the “35 effective hours” or the endless debate on the French who would not work enough hours, could however be only the last breath of the hourly reference.
Now, the hour tends to be supplanted by the day. At the national level, the laws on the 35 hours have in fact installed mainly among executives a daily reference, through the days package. According to the Acemo surveys of the Ministry of Labor, before the crisis due to Covid-19, a little less than 15% of employees in companies with more than 10 employees were thus under this package, generally from 215 to 220 days per year. The package is also widely used in public services. Since 2004, the link between hours and days has been abolished if it is not provided for in the collective agreement establishing the fixed price. Only two nets remain, the minimum daily rest of 11 hours and the 35 consecutive hours of weekly rest. Another “35-hour” tool, the time savings account is also based on a count of days.
The revealer of Covid-19
At the same time, the development of self-employment driven by the status of self-employment helps to extend the day as a social reference for work. The division into days is finally the rule in most teleworking agreements which, in general, set two to three days a week remotely. However, on the one hand, these agreements are multiplying, both in the administration and in the private sector, and, on the other hand, human resources testify to a growing support from employees, the crisis due to Covid-19 serving as a revealing the extent of teleworking jobs.
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