France Widens Search for Ecomonic Answers
By JOHN LEICESTER
Associated Press Writer
June 13, 2005, 1:53 AM EDT
PARIS -- Generations of French children have grown up on the "Asterix" comic books and the myth of the leisurely British who were conquered by Rome because among their shortcomings was a horror of working on weekends. Today, instead of poking fun at their island neighbor, some in France are wondering whether they can learn from it.
Renewed interest in "the Anglo-Saxon model" springs from France's wider search for answers to its economic problems and its fears that the forces of globalization -- a bit like the Romans in "Asterix" -- threaten to sweep away the French way of life.
Politicians, sections of the French media and business executives note that France's unemployment rate -- at 10.2 percent, rising to 23.3 percent among under-25s -- is more than twice that of Britain. Some say it's because the British labor market is more flexible than France's. Others wonder whether Britain is doing better because it refused to adopt the euro, the currency used by 12 European nations including France.
Economic growth was an anemic 1.8 percent last year in the euro zone, with France faring a bit better at 2.3 percent, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). British growth, in contrast, was 3.1 percent.
For the moment, radical reform does not appear on the agenda of the new French government put into place by President Jacques Chirac in response to France's May 29 referendum that dealt a stunning "no" to the European Union's proposed constitution.
The divisive national debate energized leftists, trade unions and anti-globalization campaigners behind the "no." They would likely be the first to take to the streets at the merest hint that the government is thinking of treading the British path of the past two decades -- breaking trade union power, freeing up labor markets, and privatizing railroads.
Even before the referendum, Chirac acknowledged that the British model was a nonstarter. "Great Britain considers that economic development is paramount," said Chirac in a TV interview. "The result is that they have half of our unemployment, but at a social cost that would not be accepted in France. I'm not casting judgment. It's a fact."
As if to confirm their attachment to state-funded public services and strong labor and social protections, an exit poll found that 40 percent of "no" voters found the draft constitution too economically liberal.
But others are asking questions, not least Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, who is widely believed to be planning a run for the presidency in 2007. He says the best social model is one that provides jobs for all, and that model "is no longer ours."
In a report last November comparing the two countries' systems, a group of French business leaders based in Britain said laying off workers is too hard in France, making companies reluctant to hire new people.
"Give us the freedom to hire and fire," they pleaded.
In Britain, the wage costs for a worker who pockets $37,000 a year are $51,760. In France, the same worker will cost a firm $85,035, the executives' report said.
Noting that Britain's per capita GDP has overtaken France's, it added: "Taking inspiration from the United Kingdom is not cheating, and recognizing that is already a victory."
The OECD ranks France as one of the toughest countries for firms to get rid of workers, with only Greece, Spain, Mexico, Turkey and Portugal even more regulated. Britain ranks with the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Ireland (all, except Ireland, are Anglo-Saxon countries and all are English-speaking) among countries where it's easiest to shed staff.
In France, roughly 25 percent of redundancies and firings are appealed to labor tribunals; In Britain, approximately seven percent are, the OECD estimates.
The Paris-based organization says that in France, a company would have to pay an average of 16 months salary to a veteran worker who wins an unfair dismissal case, while in Britain the compensation would be about half that.
The French media also are looking beyond the nation's borders for answers.
In a story headlined, "Recipes that work," the daily Le Parisien examined the British, Dutch and Danish systems. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has created "very efficient structures" for helping the unemployed find work, the newspaper noted.
And in May, Blair made the cover of the news magazine L'Express with the title "Tony Blair -- Why he succeeds." "He has made his country richer," the report said, while "France, Italy and Germany are stagnating, victims of doubt and a crisis of confidence in their leaders ..."
Such judgments raise hackles on the left.
"You speak about Great Britain without specifying that to earn a living, people there have to have two or three jobs," Socialist lawmaker Henri Emmanuelli said in a radio interview. He added sarcastically: "Even better than that would be slavery with a bowl of rice as recompense. That way there would be no unemployment at all."
www.newsday.com . . .
By JOHN LEICESTER
Associated Press Writer
June 13, 2005, 1:53 AM EDT
PARIS -- Generations of French children have grown up on the "Asterix" comic books and the myth of the leisurely British who were conquered by Rome because among their shortcomings was a horror of working on weekends. Today, instead of poking fun at their island neighbor, some in France are wondering whether they can learn from it.
Renewed interest in "the Anglo-Saxon model" springs from France's wider search for answers to its economic problems and its fears that the forces of globalization -- a bit like the Romans in "Asterix" -- threaten to sweep away the French way of life.
Politicians, sections of the French media and business executives note that France's unemployment rate -- at 10.2 percent, rising to 23.3 percent among under-25s -- is more than twice that of Britain. Some say it's because the British labor market is more flexible than France's. Others wonder whether Britain is doing better because it refused to adopt the euro, the currency used by 12 European nations including France.
Economic growth was an anemic 1.8 percent last year in the euro zone, with France faring a bit better at 2.3 percent, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). British growth, in contrast, was 3.1 percent.
For the moment, radical reform does not appear on the agenda of the new French government put into place by President Jacques Chirac in response to France's May 29 referendum that dealt a stunning "no" to the European Union's proposed constitution.
The divisive national debate energized leftists, trade unions and anti-globalization campaigners behind the "no." They would likely be the first to take to the streets at the merest hint that the government is thinking of treading the British path of the past two decades -- breaking trade union power, freeing up labor markets, and privatizing railroads.
Even before the referendum, Chirac acknowledged that the British model was a nonstarter. "Great Britain considers that economic development is paramount," said Chirac in a TV interview. "The result is that they have half of our unemployment, but at a social cost that would not be accepted in France. I'm not casting judgment. It's a fact."
As if to confirm their attachment to state-funded public services and strong labor and social protections, an exit poll found that 40 percent of "no" voters found the draft constitution too economically liberal.
But others are asking questions, not least Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, who is widely believed to be planning a run for the presidency in 2007. He says the best social model is one that provides jobs for all, and that model "is no longer ours."
In a report last November comparing the two countries' systems, a group of French business leaders based in Britain said laying off workers is too hard in France, making companies reluctant to hire new people.
"Give us the freedom to hire and fire," they pleaded.
In Britain, the wage costs for a worker who pockets $37,000 a year are $51,760. In France, the same worker will cost a firm $85,035, the executives' report said.
Noting that Britain's per capita GDP has overtaken France's, it added: "Taking inspiration from the United Kingdom is not cheating, and recognizing that is already a victory."
The OECD ranks France as one of the toughest countries for firms to get rid of workers, with only Greece, Spain, Mexico, Turkey and Portugal even more regulated. Britain ranks with the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Ireland (all, except Ireland, are Anglo-Saxon countries and all are English-speaking) among countries where it's easiest to shed staff.
In France, roughly 25 percent of redundancies and firings are appealed to labor tribunals; In Britain, approximately seven percent are, the OECD estimates.
The Paris-based organization says that in France, a company would have to pay an average of 16 months salary to a veteran worker who wins an unfair dismissal case, while in Britain the compensation would be about half that.
The French media also are looking beyond the nation's borders for answers.
In a story headlined, "Recipes that work," the daily Le Parisien examined the British, Dutch and Danish systems. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has created "very efficient structures" for helping the unemployed find work, the newspaper noted.
And in May, Blair made the cover of the news magazine L'Express with the title "Tony Blair -- Why he succeeds." "He has made his country richer," the report said, while "France, Italy and Germany are stagnating, victims of doubt and a crisis of confidence in their leaders ..."
Such judgments raise hackles on the left.
"You speak about Great Britain without specifying that to earn a living, people there have to have two or three jobs," Socialist lawmaker Henri Emmanuelli said in a radio interview. He added sarcastically: "Even better than that would be slavery with a bowl of rice as recompense. That way there would be no unemployment at all."
www.newsday.com . . .