French ticket inspectors work on trains despite positive Covid-19 tests, says union

One of France's high-speed trains that take tourists all around the country

Credit: AFP

Ticket inspectors who have tested positive for Covid-19 or had contact with a carrier of the virus are continuing to work on French trains to avoid losing pay, a trade union has claimed.

The country’s largest trade union, the CFDT, has alerted managers of the national rail company’s Ouigo subsidiary, which runs its low-cost high-speed intercity services.

In a report sent to management, CFDT officials warned that inspectors were reluctant to take sick leave, which often means reduced pay.

The union believes the problem worsened after four rail workers caught the virus on the high-speed network. They were placed on sick leave along with eight other workers who had been in proximity with them. The “contact cases” were angry “at being penalised when they were not at fault,” the union said.

Many of France’s famed high-speed intercity trains were packed full of holidaymakers over the summer. It is feared that Covid-positive inspectors could have contributed to the rise in infections at the end of the summer holidays.

Under French law, staff cannot be compelled to take a test but the rail company’s management has warned that anyone who tests positive and works in contact with others is legally obliged to inform their employer.

A union representative said: “The management are applying pressure by repeating that failing to declare that you’re Covid-positive can be criminal offence, but it’s impossible to check. When you’ve got a family to support, financial factors may be more important than civic sense.”

In an attempt to discourage infected staff from coming to work, the management has agreed to temporary measures to avoid penalising staff who go sick.

Meanwhile restaurateurs and bar owners have called for a protest against coronavirus restrictions in Paris on Friday. They say they will wear black armbands to symbolise the risk that the measures will kill their businesses.

Restaurateurs, café and bar owners in Marseille are furious at being forced to shut for two weeks from yesterday. Bar owners in Paris and other cities are angry at being ordered to close by 10pm. This restriction does not apply to restaurants.