• To fight against the spread of the Delta variant, Emmanuel Macron announced Monday evening the extension of the health pass to cafes, restaurants and shopping centers from the beginning of August.

  • Operators are torn between anger and worry about the loss of turnover.

  • Several unions in the hotel and catering industry are asking for the obligation to be postponed until September.

    An option rejected by the executive.

This Tuesday, it was not laughing at all in the kitchens of restaurants and behind the bars of bars. The extension of the health pass, announced Monday evening by Emmanuel Macron, is experienced by professionals as an injustice. Concretely, at the beginning of August - the exact date not being fixed - you will have to present a QR code justifying a complete vaccination or a recent PCR test (less than 48 hours) to sit on the terrace or eat in the dining room. And avoid a fine of 135 euros in case of non-compliance.

Operators will be involved.

“It's up to them to check the health pass […].

You know, it's not complicated, ”Minister of Labor Elisabeth Borne assured LCI on Tuesday.

A speech that does not pass at all to the restaurateurs contacted by

20 Minutes

.

“I'm angry,” explains Nathalie, manager of Carré d'Eau, in Magné, in Deux-Sèvres.

I am for the sanitary pass in restaurants.

But there, we leave 15 days for people to be vaccinated.

And in our department, there are hardly any slots available.

This means that our clients will not have their full vaccination until the end of August [due to the three week delay between the two doses, then the additional two weeks after the last injection] ”.

"We are the ones who are going to pay"

The manager therefore fears a sudden drop in turnover, in the middle of the tourist season.

“On weekends, you can have up to 150 people.

But if clients can't come anymore because they don't have their vaccine, it's going to be complicated.

Especially since the aid paid during the last confinements will no longer be there.

"

"We're going to have to check the health pass when it's not our job," adds Héloïse, who runs a restaurant in Saint-Pierre-la-Garenne (Eure).

This is an additional constraint, as we want to be able to work normally after months of closure.

"Even if she is vaccinated, she regrets the turnaround of Emmanuel Macron:" He said a few months ago that he would not extend the health pass to restaurants.

We are the ones who will pay for this change ”.

A postponement requested

In addition to customers, bar and restaurant workers will normally need to be vaccinated - or tested every other day - to be able to work from August, even though the government has promised "flexibility" for employees. sectors affected by the extension of the health pass.

In view of the difficulties caused by the timing of Emmanuel Macron's announcement, Nathalie wonders: "Why not give restaurants an additional period until September, as for caregivers?"

According to

Le Parisien

, this request was supported by the main unions in the hotel and catering industry during a meeting this Tuesday afternoon with Alain Griset, the minister responsible for SMEs.

Without success, the government remaining on an application of the health pass in early August.

"Nearly 60% of French people will no longer be able to go to restaurants if this date is maintained, because they will not have received the two doses", told franceinfo Laurent Frechet, president of the national branch of restaurateurs within the Group. national self-employed (GNI).

"I am ready to be outlawed"

With or without improvements, one question remains: will restaurateurs play the game? The executive already knows that the famous reminder notebooks (digital or paper) are often shunned or ignored by managers and customers alike… when they exist. Now, some professionals openly evoke the possibility of a sling against the health pass. “I will end up with regular clients who have not been vaccinated. Do I put them outside while they give me a living? “Asks Nathalie. Before stating: “Obviously, many restaurateurs will turn a blind eye and will not carry out checks. "

This is notably the choice of the establishment "A la fontaine aueurre", located in Morbihan.

Virginie, who works there with her husband, wants to be very clear: “I don't think I have to claim anything from my customers.

I don't see myself asking people if they are vaccinated.

She adds: "I am ready to outlaw myself to respect fundamental rights.

"A risky position, the government having warned that restaurants recalcitrant with the sanitary pass would be exposed to" criminal sanctions ".

According to the Ministry of the Interior, a "specific offense" should be created in the coming weeks ...

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  • Economy

  • Covid 19

  • Coronavirus

  • Health pass

  • Emmanuel Macron

  • Restaurant