IMMACULATE REJECTION:

French attacked as work reforms aid the ‘no’ vote (Anthony Browne, 3/22/05, Times of London)

FRENCH politicians received a severe dressing-down yesterday by José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, when the second poll within four days showed that a majority of French voters were likely to reject Europe’s new constitution.

Senhor Barroso told the French Government to do its part to win public support and insisted that France could not tell the Commission to abandon legislation unpopular with the French public. He tried to distance himself from any failure by declaring repeatedly: “It’s not our fault.”

It's such a rarity in history for the French to do the right thing that you have to assume they'll botch this too and vote "yes".

MORE:
France Dismantles Its 35-Hour Workweek (LAURENCE FROST, 3/21/05, AP)

Sophie Guilbaud not only holds a full-time job, she also helps run her son's nursery and treats herself to regular weekdays of shopping, movies and art shows. The secret to her balancing act is a remarkable piece of social engineering — France's 35-hour workweek. Introduced under the Socialists but headed for effective abolition by lawmakers Tuesday, "les 35 heures" have been a boon for some but, critics argue, a big drain on the economy.

Heated debate over dismantling the working time law has fed into wider political and literary soul-searching in France, on themes ranging from the country's economic frailty and bureaucratic office culture to whether quality of life should be measured in time or money.

For Guilbaud, a Parisian who works as a loan company manager, that last question is a no-brainer.

"Work is not the only thing in my life," she said, suggesting she might quit rather than work more hours.

But with unemployment at 10 percent, politicians of all stripes acknowledge that the country's unique 35-hour law has failed in its original ambition: to force employers to hire massively. What's more, there are strong signs that it hurt living standards as employers froze salaries to make up for lost labor.

The French version of Sophie's choice: work or quit.

Posted by Orrin Judd at March 22, 2005 12:02 AM