Short-Time Work After Wildfires: Which Businesses in Gironde and Landes Are Eligible for Support

Bordeaux – 28/07/2026: Businesses in areas affected by wildfires in the departments of Gironde and Landes can apply for short-time work if official protective measures directly restrict their activities. The scheme is primarily aimed at businesses in evacuated areas or zones where access is temporarily restricted. Applications must be submitted through the state online portal for short-time work under the reason “other exceptional circumstances”.

For businesses within an evacuation or restricted zone, support is generally provided for under the published guidelines because the interruption of operations results directly from an official order. In such cases, short-time work is intended to safeguard employment during a temporary closure and prevent businesses from having to lay off staff because of an exceptional, unforeseeable event.

Businesses outside officially restricted areas can also submit an application. However, they must provide comprehensive evidence that their economic difficulties are directly attributable to preventive or protective measures taken by the authorities. This may apply, for example, to businesses that cannot open because numerous employees have been evacuated, have themselves been affected by the fires, or cannot reach their workplace due to blocked access routes.

A voluntary closure without an official access restriction and without a demonstrable link to the protective measures is not sufficient. Businesses should therefore carefully document orders, disruptions and their consequences for operations. This may include official notices, information on closed transport routes, and records of absent employees and lost working hours. Approval will be decided on the basis of each business’s individual circumstances.

Those who do not meet the requirements for short-time work can consider other employment-law options. If work has been collectively interrupted, for example because of a complete closure resulting from staff shortages or reduced opening hours, lost hours may be made up later under the applicable conditions. If individual employees are absent because of an evacuation or impassable transport routes, leave, the use of accumulated working-time credits, or making up the work later may be considered by agreement. Which solution is permissible depends on the employment contract, collective bargaining provisions and workplace agreements.

Urssaf and the Council for Social Protection of the Self-Employed have also announced assistance for affected businesses in Gironde and Landes. Possible measures include deferred payment of social security contributions and waivers of surcharges and late-payment penalties. Businesses must contact the relevant authority and explain how they have been affected.

At the same time, emergency services in Gironde are seeking additional technical support. Businesses able to provide excavators, tanker trucks, other earthmoving machinery or suitable drivers are asked to report these capacities to the CODIS 33 operations command.