Do Employers In France Need To Allocate Restaurant Vouchers To Employees Working Remotely?

• Published date: 25 September 2020
• Subject Matter: Media, Telecoms, IT, Entertainment, Coronavirus (COVID-19), Hotels & Hospitality, Employment and Workforce Wellbeing, Operational Impacts and Strategy
• Law Firm: lus Laboris
• Author: Mr Bruno Malvaud (Capstan Avocats)

Do employees working remotely, as many are during the COVID-19 pandemic, have a right to restaurant vouchers? This article provides guidance.

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Contents

Remote work, which has already brought up to date thanks to the complete overhaul of the system carried out by one of the Macron ordinances (n'2017-1387 of 22 September 2017), has been put forward as a preventive measure in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. While employees have appreciated this new form of work organisation, more practical issues have emerged over the weeks including whether they are still entitled to restaurant vouchers (tickets restaurant, or 'TR').

1. The purpose of TRs

The restaurant voucher is a special payment voucher issued by the employer to employees to enable them to pay for all or part of the price of a meal consumed in a restaurant (Labour Code, article L. 3262-1).

It was introduced to enable employees of organisations which do not have a catering facility (canteen, company restaurant) at their place of work to have lunch off site on advantageous financial terms, since their employer, jointly with the employee, pays the cost of these meals and the employer's contribution is exempt from social security contributions and taxes.

2. What are TRs used for?

The use of TRs has changed: first they could be redeemed with individuals or organisations exercising the profession of restaurateur, hotel and restaurant owner or a similar activity since 2009 they can also be used in fruit and vegetable retailers (Labour Code, article L. 3262-3 amended by law no. 2009-879 of 21 July 2009).

It is for this reason that many shops and food superstores accept payment for certain food purchases by means of one (or even two) TRs per day. The use of TRs is limited to a maximum amount of EUR 19 per day (Labour Code article R. 3262-10).

The terms of use of restaurant vouchers were last amended on 10 June 2020 (by Decree No. 2020-706) to encourage the use of TRs in restaurants and hotel restaurants, and thus to respond to the economic difficulties of these establishments resulting from their closure during the state of health emergency. Between 11 June and 31 December 2020 and only in hotel-restaurants or similar establishments, this decree allows the use of TRs on Sundays and public holidays and increases their maximum amount of use to EUR 38 per day.

3. A potentially discriminatory situation?

The employer might be tempted to consider that, since the TR is intended to defray some of the...