Kirk McElhearn, a “native New Yorker ” who has lived in France for over 20 years, has a rather clear and cogent perspective on the striking. From his article:

The French have a curious relationship with work. Recent polls have shown that some two-thirds to three-quarters of French youth would prefer a cushy civil servant job, guaranteed for life with good retirement benefits, over other options. While there are entrepreneurs in France, they remain under the radar, and a majority of French university students would never consider taking the risk of starting their own businesses. This suggests that an entire generation is averse to taking risks; not only do they want an iron rice-bowl as soon as they start working, but they don’t want to take chances creating businesses and having more control over their lives.

Steven Pearlstein, of the Washington Post, today published an opinion piece on the differing nature of the protests here and in France:

In one country, millions of hard-working people who earn modest wages and have no job security march to demand the right to continue participating in the global economy.

In another, millions of people without jobs and fearful of the global economy march to demand that, if and when they get a job, it comes with a 35-hour workweek, five weeks of vacation, mandatory profit-sharing, retirement at age 60 and the right never to be relocated, fired or demoted.

“My country is broken,” said Ethuin, gazing at the smoldering automobile carcasses a few yards away and the carpet of glass shards, broken dishes and computer pieces covering the sidewalk in the heart of one of the city’s most affluent neighborhoods. “I never imagined I would ever see this in Paris.”

But this last sympathetic addition of his is what truly scares me:

“They have no jobs,” he said. “It’s not their fault.”

I don’t usually express my political or economic opinions online…but not attributing fault to the most ironic display of violence France has seen this century worries me that the country doesn’t recognize where it’s headed or what’s to blame.

What do I mean by irony? The law being protested (particularly by the unemployed) is designed specifically to increase the employment of young French citizens (the unemployment rate is currently over 20 percent!).

Now I understand that it’s not that simple–the law would set a precedent for more flexible/Western/capitalistic labor laws…something that threatens the job stability & labor protection that French citizens have come to expect. Specifically the law would allow French employers to fire people under the age of 26; right now “it is impossible to fire even the most incompetent workers without huge financial liabilities for companies.”

Why would companies take risks at young hires when they remain handcuffed to them, regardless of employees’ competitive ability? When will the next generation of French wake up to see the landscape of the 21st century economy, where companies need to be agile and employees need to be continually educated?
I’d love to see the beautiful, historic, and refined country of France “get it” at last. It’s crucial for their economy that they incorporate the rest of the world’s business practices. If they keep going the way they are, unemployment will worsen and the generous privileges they enjoy will begin to disappear…