Troubles in France

At my current job, part of my position requires me to monitor media sources. So, at times, the television in front of my desk is tuned into Fox News Channel. Now, twice in the last few weeks, I have sat there and watched French “protests” turn violent. Now, the violence has really been mostly trivial, with people throwing rocks and bottles at Police and Photographers. Nothing too serious has happened. The point being that, even though the violence is only being caused by certain troublemakers who hide in with serious protestors, I find the whole situation nothing short of hilarious. I have never been a very big fan of the French in general. Even when I was younger, I did not care for the French. Through their travels, both of my parents had been to France, and, as Americans, had not been treated very well. If there is only one definite way to earn my contempt, it is by treating my parents in a disrespectful manner. So, after constant negative sentiments by the French leading up to the Iraq War, I loved it when people began jumping on the French-bashing bandwagon. Nothing in recent history has shown how incredibly idiotic and overly prideful French citizens can be then these recent labor disputes.

For the first time in years, I actually side with the French government on this issue. In 2005, France had a 10% unemployment rate (according to the CIA World Fact Book). Now, that is actually down from 11% at the turn of the century. To give you an idea of how bad this statistic is, the U.S., U.K., and Japan all boasted unemployment rates 4.3 – 5.1, with Japan having the lowest rate. So, France, which is supposed to be among the greatest nations in the world, should not be dealing with an unemployment rate that is about twice as high as the U.S. and Japan. The problem lies in the business practices of the European nation, and their unwillingness to change accordingly. As time has shown, specifically in China and Russia, socialist-style economies simply do not work. As with many other political and economic theories, they look wonderful on paper, but they rarely meet with success. As such, the fact that France has existed in a socialist economic state for a somewhat extended period is starting to come around top bite them. Therefore, in an unusually bold, and intelligent move on the part of the government, Prime Minister Dominique De Villepin has attempted to fight this unemployment epidemic by instituting a new policy.

The new labor law stipulates that an employer can fire/layoff an employee under the age of 26 any time in the first two year of employment. This was done with the youth’s best interest in mind. Now, I do not know the exact statistic, but I believe the unemployment rate for young people in France is about 40%. That is mind-blowing. The problem is that labor laws in France do not make it easy to fire/layoff employees. In fact, it is nearly impossible. Therefore, in light of economic downturns, employers are not willing to risk hiring people they cannot let go of in times of financial crisis. The purpose of the new pro-business law is to encourage employers to take the risk of hiring new workers, knowing that, if in that initial 2-year period, the company experiences hard times, that person can be let go. Therefore, the French government is actually attempting to help young workers by giving employers incentives to hire new people. And how do the youth of France show their appreciation? They organize mass protests. It is evidence that people within a socialist society become too complacent and dependent on the government. There is little incentive to work hard, because there is little chance that you will be fired. The government is there to make sure you keep your job. This is something that most Americans do not understand.

Especially in a time where workers can be brought in from other nations, to work for less money, Americans have to put forth all their effort to ensure that their employer will not let them go. It is a constant teaching in America to make yourself invaluable at your job, that way the incentive to keep you around is increased productivity. We do not have the same safety net that France has, so it encourages Americans to work harder. Another reason this is an issue that many Americans cannot relate to, is that in modern times, we have seen a shift in longevity of employment. As a recent college graduate, I only plan to stay at my current employment for year or two. That has become the mindset of most American college grads. You go to school, maybe have a few internships, then you get a job. Once you gain experience and learn what you can, you move on to something new and hopefully better. That is not how things work in France. Most young workers in France know that once they get a job, that is where they will be for the rest of their employed life. That is how things used to be here in the United States. However, times changed, so did employment practices.

Now, I will admit, I do get a sad sort of satisfaction at seeing France in such disarray, primarily because of their constant criticism of the United States. However, at the same time, many of our grandfathers fought and died so that France could be free. We have an invested interest in their survival and growth. I hate seeing our efforts wasted by such stupidity. Workers are unhappy because they are unemployed, but then they don’t want the government to try and execute sound economic principles in order to solve the problem. My hope is that De Villepin stays strong and does not cave in.

If you want to see the numbers for yourself, go to:http://cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/fr.html#Govt