According to Roland Kuhn, the decision to close all construction sites on Friday 20 March at 5pm was a positive one. Nevertheless, the consequences for the building sector will be serious and significant delays are to be expected. According to Kuhn, however, it should be possible to catch up if they can resume works during the summer.
The federation also requests the rapid reimbursement of companies that are on short-term contracts, as some of them are already facing liquidity problems.
Finally, Kuhn is also calling for an end to public tenders for construction projects until 20 April, at the earliest.
According to the union, the virus poses a significant danger to those working in construction and transport. But the closure of these sites is also synonymous with partial unemployment. Employees will therefore only receive 80% of their salary. Jean-Luc Matteis believes that the other 20% should be reimbursed by the state in order to allow employees to receive their full salary.
The union also calls on employers not to let employees suffer the full extent of all the delays caused by the health crisis. Matteis also said the deadlines for private and public worksites should be suspended without further delay.
In contradiction to Kuhn, Matteis is of the opinion that it is still too early to make the decision to postpone collective leave. The union thinks it is better to see how the situation evolves first, and then turn towards finding the best possible and pragmatic solutions with employers.
