Historically a non-working day, Pentecost Monday became a day of solidarity in 2004 before becoming again in 2008… a public Holiday like any other. This year it falls on May 20.
Pentecost Monday is a public holiday. As such, it can be worked on or not, and potentially chosen by the company as a day of solidarity… or not. We’ll explain it to you.
Even if the meaning of “public holiday” has deviated towards that of “non-working day”, public holidays are in reality only days of celebration, religious, secular or of commemoration, explains the Labor Code, which lists eleven in France. Only May 1st is compulsory.
For others, it is the company or branch agreement which sets the days which will not be worked by employees. Without a collective agreement, it is the employer himself who determines public holidays or not.
Seven hours of work offered to the State
In France, until the French Revolution, the entire week following Pentecost was non-working. Under the Third Republic, Easter and Pentecost Mondays were declared public holidays by a law of 1886. The day was a non-working day until 2004.
The law of June 30, 2004 initiated by Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin removes the non-working nature of Pentecost Monday and replaces it with a day of solidarity. This follows the deadly heatwave of 2003, which caused the death of more than 15,000 people. The solidarity day aims to finance actions in favor of the autonomy of elderly or disabled people.
Since 2008, Pentecost Monday has once again become a classic public holiday. It is the companies which now freely set the terms of the solidarity day. Some offer it to their employees, others deduct it from vacation or RTT, still others divide the time over the year. The result is equivalent: employees offer seven hours of work per year to the State, with a total contribution estimated at nearly 3 billion euros.
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