After a process that probably felt more like pulling teeth than legislating for the French government, a new law concerning the labor laws of France has been passed although as alluded to it did not happen without a fight. The effects of the law are that hiring, firing, and setting work hours is now simplified for businesses and it is being championed by supporters as a solution to cut France’s unemployment which sits at roughly an unhealthy 10% (note this does not include underemployment) according to the latest figures from January of 2016 and increase the competitiveness of the large European country on the global stage of economics.
This bill is not without problems as over half of France’s citizens who were polled expressed opposition to it and in true democratic fashion started to engage in protests, some of which unfortunately had occasional violence. The timing is curious because France is still in mourning over a Bastille Day terrorist attack that left dozens dead or injured in Nice but with the public’s attention away from the issue of labor laws and on the issue of terrorism for the third time in roughly a year and a half maybe it was seen as an unfortunate opportunity. This legislation, whatever the results of it, will be a central and controversial part of the legacy of Francois Hollande who became President in 2012 after beating incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy.
What makes this bill so interesting for Hollande is that its passage required the leapfrogging of the French lower house via a special piece of constitutional machinery because he faced such strong opposition from members of his own Socialist Party. This opposition which ranged from those same leapfrogged socialist lawmakers to unions to the workers themselves argued that it undermined the rights of workers and that this second use of special constitution mechanics to pass economic legislation in a short period of time was a bastardization of the democratic process. One of the most contested (and interesting) parts of the law allows for individually negotiated company agreements to supersede national ones with supporters arguing that this flexibility allows for the competitiveness the government craves with unions saying it chops them down at the knees. Time will tell if the bill is a success or failure but given all of the maneuvering that Hollande had to do in order to pass it, it is crucial it works for the country and his seemingly weak election chances.
