11 March 2006 Blog Home : March 2006 : Permalink
French riot police have grappled with protesters at the Sorbonne in Paris in unrest over a new labour law, making it easier to sack young employees.
Police stormed the university early on Saturday to drive out at least 150 people, mainly students, some of whom had been inside for three days.
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The First Employment Contract (CPE) passed by parliament on Thursday is a two-year contract for under-26-year-olds which employers can break off at any time without explanation.
Ministers hope the flexibility will encourage employers to hire more young people, safe in the knowledge that they will be able to get rid of them if they have to.
Critics say younger workers would have less job security than older colleagues and France's generous labour provisions would be undermined.
The new legislation currently only applies to small firms but some fear it could be misused by larger employers and make it even harder for young people to find a permanent job.
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The overnight violence has echoes of the labour and student unrest of 1968 in Paris.
One Parisian student, named only as Elodie, told AFP it was not a conscious attempt to repeat those riots.
"The context is different," she said. "In '68, the students when they left university, they found work."
I find the quote at the end amusing. Elodie, ma cherie, if you really want work then why are you striking to stop meking it easier to hire (and fire) people of your age? One assumes that whatever else the Sorbonne teaches the sort of common sense logic of "cause and effect" is not taught and neither are basic sums and economics.