Withdraw French law or workers walk: union

[CHIMO]

Withdraw French law or workers walk: union
Last Updated Sun, 19 Mar 2006 20:15:41 EST
CBC News

A French union leader is threatening to call a general strike on Monday unless the government withdraws a youth employment law that sparked protests across the country during the weekend.

Bernard Thibault, head of the powerful CGT union, made the announcement a day after workers and students held protest marches in more than 200 cities. There were conflicting reports on the number of protesters, ranging from 500,000 to 1.5 million.

The workers are demanding that Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin abandon attempts to enact legislation, scheduled to take effect next month, that would allow employers tohire and fire young workers at will.

The law would allow employers to fire young workers without cause if they are less than 26 years old and have worked less than two years.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2006/03/19/strike-060319.html



Looks like a flame that actually burns.

[jschurchin]

1. The Prime Minister Must be a Republican!!!!!

[Gman]

2. Watch closely, America

You're about to get a lesson on how its supposed to be. Everyone united. Everyone strikes. An injustice to one is an injustice to all.

[Brian Stevens]

4. Thats what I'm talkin about.

Ditto GMan :nuke: :headbang:

[fshrink]

3. That set of measures

in fact aims at turning the French work laws into something akin to the US way (allowing firms to hire and fire young workers at will)... The French work laws have been forged by repeated uprisings through the XIXth and the first half of the XXth century. It's good to see that people resist. Wish we could see more of the same resistance here. I'm afraid though that this resistance will be futile... Capitalism has to dominate before dying, and, contrary to what Fuckyouyama contended, we're not there yet. I know youth had a good time rebelling over there. That counts too.

[blurp]

5. The government's right on this one.

You can't force businesses to risk getting stuck with a boat anchor of an employee and not expect them to be especially reluctant to hire.

They're so careful right now that young workers from poor backgrounds have an unemployment rate of about 50%.

[Jim Sagle]

6. Sorry, no sale. "Fire at will" is our way, and it sucks.

I like their way better, and so does anyone who doesn't have his or head up management's ass.

[blurp]

9. Unemployment sucks, too. But that's what you get.

You've never employed anyone in your life, have you?

Ever actually MAKE a job? Or do you just use them?

[rman]

12. ...thanks to outsourcing.

[Jim Sagle]

24. I work for a living. What do you do, besides insulting honest workers

with right-wing stink tank gobbledygook?

[rman]

10. oh sure, but you can force workers to have no job security -

as long as eternal profit growth for big corporations is secure, right?

Corporations' being "careful" consists of transferring employment to cheap labor nations, to secure their eternal profit growth.

[Crayson]

14. The opposite

This law is not an incentive to create jobs.
There is no barrier to create short temporary jobs now.

But if you sign a non-terminated job contract with your new employee than you are obviously planning for a longer duration and therefor you must give the employee the chance to also plan for a longer duration.

This law is about ENDING jobs easily, not creating them!!
The boss could now walk up to his (young and less than 2 years employed) employee and tell him that his wage has just been cut in half. Take it or leave it.



The real problem is that modern societies just don't need that many uneducated workers anymore. More and more specialists with university degrees are needed and not people who leave school after the 6 basic years.
When everybody else from the street can do your job then you're never gonna get a raise. Specially not with laws like this and thousands of people just waiting in line for your job.
Your boss will just hire another poor guy from the street, invest 1 week to train him for the job and he will be happy for another 2 years.

If this new regulation is signed into law I'd dare to make the prophecy that in one year and 11 months many young people suddenly get the boot from their bosses.


Political side note:
The French do have a long history of solidarity and unions and if the government fails in this issue (they wanted this to be the answer to the recent riots) then there will be another government in place after the next elections.

[Bassic]

20. I agree, this is a terrible law.

I hope it will not pass.

[radwriter0555]

7. The french want their job protectoins, but it's costing them actual jobs.

Sadly, the new law makes sense for everyone, but the kids don't see that.

[w4rma]

8. Seems like a slippery slope. (nt)

[cap]

11. it's not just the kids...

everyone knows that the law for everyone will change if this goes through.

[rman]

13. And outsourcing has nothing to do with it,

nor does the corporate paradigm of eternal profit growth.
:sarcasm:

[Crayson]

16. No it doesn't make sense

What we see around the world is the "Reduce to the Max" stragety.

Every firm wants to be a lean mean machine.
Studies show that fewer people work more and longer than every before.

The economy ONLY WORKS if there are people around who can buy the products. You can't always make more profit as a firm by producing cheaper and paying fewer wages and kicking out all but the most important few people and the rest ending up jobless and poor.

Firms must understand that they are just PART of the economy and that a healthy economy keeps the money flowing TO AND FROM the people. The more money that is accumulated (be it the little savings or the big banks or the state) the fewer it flows the sooner your economy is DEAD.

People need places to work and to earn money so they can buy your products.
Or else the system will collapse and if it all goes too far you'll see burning cars and after cars it will be factories and offices.



Give everybody a little part of the cake, it doesn't need to be the same little part for everybody (that would be communism) but everybody a little share (call it socialism).
If you end up with too many people without a piece of cake they will take their cake by force.

[Bassic]

19. They'll take it by force, or at least

try to do so and stir up social unrest and street violence.

[Bassic]

15. Yeah, this is making a lot of people mad.

Students have been rioting there for a few days. Some people fear it might degenerate into another "Mai '68"

[Crayson]

17. About Time

Maybe it's about time again!

That was 40 years ago.
This generation needs an own 68, now that the some of the original 68'ies sit in the government and don't do their job right.

[Bassic]

18. True, although I do deplore the violence that comes

with it.

Edit: Of course, much of that violence is as much the reponsibility of the cops as it is the student's...

Other edit: Welcome to DU :hi:

[Vidar]

21. Cheering the French union leader.

[Renew Deal]

22. I don't see what's wrogn with that law.

Maybe I am missing something here, but an employer should be able to terminate student labor as needed.

[Rainscents]

23. French people are NOT stupid, they see what is going on over here

due to law like this. I am with French people... Don't let the corporate fuckers win this. Once they do, they'll go after next group and so on and so on. Just like what did here with UNION.