Time savings account: principle, implementation and interests for the company

The time savings account (CET) is an essential system for companies and employees who wish to optimize the management of working time and the flexibility of the leave. Discover the principle of this, its implementation in the company, and its interests for all parties.

What is the time savings account?

Definition and beneficiaries

The time savings account is a time capital made available to the employee to accumulate non-taken rest days (RTT, paid holidays, etc.) in order to use them later or convert them into delayed remuneration. The CET is applied in all companies for which a collective branch, group, business or establishment agreement can be concluded. Therefore, all categories of employees can benefit from it.

Thanks to this time savings system, the employee can organize a postponement of leave for a personal project (training, sabbatical leave, etc.) or complete his salary by converting compensation into remuneration. On the employer side, this allows provisional management of jobs and skills (GPEC) (GPEC), in particular by anticipating absences and optimizing the workload.

What the Labor Code provides

The Labor Code, as well as the Social Security Code, frame the implementation of the CET and its use. Legal obligations generally require the drafting of a defining agreement:

• The membership conditions and the scope of the digital labor code relating to this
• The procedures for postponement, capitalization of days, and valuation in payroll
• The applicable social regime, including social contributions and taxation
• The duration of use of the ET and the portability of the rights in the event of a change of situation

Conventional provisions vary according to the professional branch or the company agreement. In addition, the legal working time (35 hours) is not changed: it is rather a tool for flexibility and organization.

Is this compulsory?

The time savings account is not compulsory in companies. Its implementation requires a collective or branch agreement, within which the conditions are set. Note that the CE is not compulsory either for the employee. The latter is free to use it and affect the rights he wants.

Implementation in business

Under what conditions can this be established?

The time savings account is implemented by a collective agreement or a company agreement, or even a branch agreement, through the union representatives. In the absence of a union representative in companies with less than 200 employees, this negotiation is possible with the works council or, failing that, the staff representative (s).

What should the agreement that institutes the CET?

To secure the legal framework of the time savings account, the collective agreement must in particular define:

• The conditions and limits of food in time or money at the initiative of the employee, or hours completed beyond the collective duration at the initiative of the company,
• The management methods of this
• Conditions of use and liquidation / transfer
• In some cases, an insurance system or guarantee of rights acquired by employees in the event of the employer's failure.

The social partners are relatively independent in collective negotiations. They can thus include in the agreement of other provisions, such as a minimum duration of seniority to claim this.

Advantages for the employee and the employer

The EC has many advantages:

• For the employee : a capitalization of days and a departure to anticipate retired, the possibility of monetizing your RTT or transforming its days of rest not taken into employee savings. The employee can thus organize his time, provide a long absence (training, sabbatical leave) or complete his salary.
• For the employer : reduce certain costs related to absenteeism, improve the development of working time to anticipate the peaks of activity, strengthen its employer brand and retain talent thanks to flexibility, optimize early retirements.

In short, this time savings system offers a balance between advantages and disadvantages: it allows more freedom for the employee, but requires rigorous management to avoid a balance of remaining leave too high or a heavy financial burden for the employer.

What are the employer's obligations after setting up this?

The EC imposes good administrative management on the part of the employer, via compliance with rules generally set by branch agreement or professional agreement. In their absence, the employer is required to inform employees, and in particular new, of the text in force. He must provide his teams with an up -to -date duplicate of this regulatory framework on the workplace and on the intranet.

Management and use of the time savings account

Power supply by the employee

In time:

• Days of paid leave not taken, beyond the 4th week (often after 20 or 24 working days of leave)
• RTT days not used
• Days of rest acquired as a day package
• Hours of rest from overtime (given legal increases)

It is not possible to place days of rest granted for health or safety reasons (daily rest, weekly rest, compulsory night for night work, etc.). In addition, the employee can transfer part of his days (up to 10 days/year) to this verse some of the savings plans (PER or Perco), if the collective agreement or the employer allows it.

In money:

• Premiums (13th month, participation, profit -sharing, etc.)
• Overtime (increased)
• Share of remuneration (increases, compensation) of which the employee voluntarily wishes to affect all or part to this

Food of this by the employer

In time: the hours performed beyond the collective working hours can, depending on the collective agreement, be integrated into the ET with their possible increases.

Via a subscription: the employer can abound the CET (in time or money) to encourage employees to place their days or sums there, for example by doubling any time placed (100 %subscribing). This subscription must exclusively concern rights or sums which are not yet due to the employee.

Remunerate absences

The EC authorizes the remuneration of certain absences, defined by the collective agreement. When the employee poses days of rest funded by the CET, he receives compensatory allowances taken from his time capital. Social contributions apply to these sums, depending on the regulations in force. This flexibility provides a concrete advantage: maintaining a stable salary even during a prolonged absence, such as sabbatical leave or training leave.

Complete the salary

Other employees choose to monetize their days to complete their salary slip. The conversion of the holidays into remuneration can be carried out directly or deferred. Monetization must be provided for in the agreement. Otherwise, the employer can refuse it.

Note that if it is possible to deposit your 5th week of vacation in its EC, it is however prohibited to request its monetization. The only days of CP likely to be unlocked to complete its remuneration are days of leave which exceed the 30 legal legal days.

Constitute savings

Finally, the EC can be used to build employee savings, via a business savings plan (PEE) or a savings plan for collective retirement (PERCO).

In the first case, the payments are assimilated to voluntary payments and are therefore taken into account in the ceiling of 25 % of the annual payments to the PEE. These sums are subject to all social charges, as well as taxation for income tax.

In the second case, payments are partially subject to social security contributions and benefit from tax exemption.

Specific case

What happens in the event of a recovery or compulsory liquidation of the company?

The rights acquired within the framework of an CE is provided against the risk of non -payment (such as wages) within the limit of € 94,200 per employee. Beyond that, the agreement or agreement must provide for an insurance or financial guarantee system to cover acquired rights. If it is not yet provided, the employee receives compensation corresponding to the monetary conversion of these rights.

What is happening in the event of a termination of the employee's contract?

During a breach of the contract (resignation, dismissal, etc.), the employee can recover in cash the balance of his this in the form of compensatory compensation for leave. It can also transfer the balance to another employer if a tacit agreement or an agreement allows it. Another possibility: to request, with the agreement of your employer, the consignment of the rights acquired and converted into monetary units from the Caisse des Dépôt et Consignations.

Taxation and social charges

The tax regime of the time savings account varies depending on the form taken by monetization. The sums collected are subject to social security contributions and income tax, apart from certain exemptions provided for by conventional provisions. It is crucial to control the financial assembly to avoid fiscal increase, while taking advantage of an optimization (e.g. payment on a employee savings plan).

FAQ - Frequently asked questions

How to unlock the rights recorded at the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations?

Unlocking recorded rights can be done in two ways:

• At the request of the employee, by transferring all or part of the sums to another system, such as a corporate savings plan (PEE, PEI), a perco or a retirement savings plan according to the conditions provided for by the collective agreement or the regulations of the savings plans.
• At the request of the employee or his beneficiary, by direct payment, at any time, of all or part of the sums recorded.

What is the interest of a time savings account?

The EC allows you to capitalize on vacation days not taken or overtime to finance personal projects, supplement your salary or anticipate retirement. It is a flexible tool that offers employees more freedom while allowing employers to optimize human resources management.

How often can I withdraw money from a savings account?

The frequency of withdrawals of this depends on the provisions provided for in the collective agreement. Some agreements authorize occasional withdrawals for specific projects, while others impose more restrictive conditions. It is therefore essential to consult the framework defined by your company.

How to close her this?

To close an CE, you must request it from your employer or follow the procedures described in the collective agreement. The remaining balance can be monetized, transferred to a new this if you change employer, or placed in a retirement savings plan according to the available options.