Parliamentary rules in France are a bit bizarre. Rules allow the president to pass legislation directly, over the wishes of parliament, without a vote.
The legislation stands unless the president fails a confidence vote.
Expect a vote shortly as Hollande whipped up legislation that neither the left nor the right can stand.
The Financial Times reports French Government Bypasses Parliament to Force Through Jobs Bill.
The French government is to ram through parliament a jobs bill designed to bring flexibility to France’s dysfunctional labour market using decree powers to sidestep fierce resistance from its own Socialist MPs.
Lacking parliamentary backing to pass the legislation, Prime Minister Manuel Valls was authorised by President François Hollande to force through the reform without a vote.
The use of the decree power — which Mr Hollande used last year to pass measures to liberalise the economy — means the bill will automatically be adopted in the lower and upper houses unless the government loses a confidence vote.
The jobs reform simplifies labour rules, facilitates lay-offs in case of economic slowdowns and allows companies to strike deals with their employees on overtime.
Following street protests in March, the government watered down the bill, taking out pro-business measures such as a ceiling on severance packages in case of wrongful dismissals. However, the retreat failed to calm unions, who have railed against the idea that companies could bypass them and sign deals on working hours with employee representatives. In the meantime, the country’s main business organisations have withdrawn their initial support for the bill.
[Congratulations to Hollande for making virtually everyone unhappy. That’s not easy to do.]
He needs every single vote on the left to avoid the humiliation of being eliminated in the first round of the presidential elections in April next year. Recent opinion surveys show he would not qualify for the runoff, coming third after Marine Le Pen, the leader of the far-right National Front party, and the centre-right nominee.
Nobody Happy
Hollande’s own party cannot stand this legislation nor Hollande himself. And the bill was watered down so much the opposition does not like it either.
Hollande’s popularity was at a record low 17% in March in French Opinion Poll.
Confidence Vote
With everyone truly upset at the president, one might think he would fail the confidence vote.
More than likely, Hollande will survive. The socialists are going to get clobbered in the next election and to vote against Hollande now will put them out of a job now rather than next year.
Surprises are possible if disgust gets low enough, but in general, politicians would rather have a paycheck than do the right thing.
Mike “Mish” Shedlock
“Rules allow the president to pass legislation directly, over the wishes [of] parliament, without a vote.”
We have the same thing in the US but we call it “Executive Orders”. We need to have confidence votes or some other convenient way to cancel those things.
Confidence votes aren’t realistic because it is either ‘accept this law or bring down the government… or be caught trying to ‘.
“Bring down the government”? Even better!
We had that back in colonial times… it’s called a king.
…or Queen .
The only way to vote against a (real, not figurehead) king or queen is with a gun.
As in: American Revolution.
Executive orders cannot (Constitutionally) be used to make laws – just direct the bureaucrats to carry them out or not.
A Classic: One of my favorites.
I appreciate your thinking that your Ministry is protecting industrial activities and jobs in France. I and Titan have a 40-year history of buying closed factories and companies, losing millions of dollars and turning them around to create a good business, paying good wages. Goodyear tried for over four years to save part of the Amiens jobs that are some of the highest paid, but the French unions and French government did nothing but talk.
I have visited the factory a couple of times. The French workforce gets paid high wages but works only three hours. They get one hour for breaks and lunch, talk for three, and work for three. I told this to the French union workers to their faces. They told me that’s the French way!
You are a politician so you don’t want to rock the boat. The Chinese are shipping tires into France – really all over Europe – and yet you do nothing. The Chinese government subsidizes all the tire companies. In five years, Michelin won’t be able to produce tires in France. France will lose its industrial business because its government is more government.
Sir, your letter states you want Titan to start a discussion. How stupid do you think we are? Titan is the one with money and talent to produce tires. What does the crazy union have? It has the French government. The French farmer wants cheap tire. He does not care if the tires are from China or India and governments are subsidizing them. Your government doesn’t care either. “We’re French!”
The U.S. government is not much better than the French. Titan had to pay millions to Washington lawyers to sue the Chinese tire companies because of their subsidizing. Titan won. The government collects the duties. We don’t get the duties, the government does.
Titan is going to buy a Chinese tire company or an Indian one, pay less than one Euro per hour and ship all the tires France needs. You can keep the so-called workers. Titan has no interest in the Amien North factory.
Best regards,
Maurice M. Taylor, Jr.
Chairman and CEO
Here is Another: Classic:
I was born in 1948, I started working at the age of 14 years as a printer, as handler and then as a dramatic artist. I have always paid my taxes regardless of the rate under all governments.
At no time, I have failed in my duties. Historical films I participated reflect my love of France and its history.
More famous people than me were expatriates or have left the country.
Unfortunately I have nothing more to do here, but I will continue to love the French and the public with whom I shared so many emotions! I’m leaving because you consider that success, creation, talent, actually the difference should be penalized.
I do not ask to be approved, I could at least be respected.
All those who have left France have not been insulted as I am.
I do not have to justify the reasons for my choice, which are numerous and intimate.
I leave, after paying, in 2012, 85% tax on my income. But I keep the spirit of that France which was beautiful and that I hope will remain.
I give you my passport and Social Security, which I never used it. We no longer the same country, I am a true European, a citizen of the world, as my father always taught me.
I find pathetic the fury of justice against my son Guillaume judged by judges who condemned any kid to three years in prison for 2 grams of heroin, when so many others escaped prison for acts otherwise more serious.
I do not throw stones at those who have cholesterol, hypertension, diabetes or too much alcohol or those who fall asleep on their scooter: I am one of them as your dear media love both the repeat.
I never killed anyone, I do not think unworthy, I paid 145 million euros in taxes in forty-five years, I work 80 people in companies that were created for them and are managed by them.
I am neither complaining nor bragging, but I refuse the word “pathetic”.
Who are you to judge me as well, I ask Mr. Ayrault, Prime Minister Mr. Holland, I ask you, who are you? Despite my excesses, my appetite and my love life, I am a free, sir, and I’ll be polite.
Gérard Depardieu
Lucky they got out before the borders were closed.
Madashell, you are closer to the truth than you know. There is a family I know in EU, EU descent totally, who have not been able to even get legitimate ID for children for over five years, by objection of a relative out of vindictiveness… hence left paperless in a third country…to the point of rejection of that nationality as of age to… much worse than I can describe here… unable to ever visit close family while they were alive etc. The possibility remaining of obtaining a new workable nationality means living in UK, but the only law guaranteeing entry to UK is an EU clause that gives right to residence of EU nationals. Whatever happens they support Brexit no matter if it makes the return more difficult.
Oh yeah, the nationality in question WAS French, and one by one it is rejected as being never claimed, prefering to remain stateless until a proper nationality may be obtained.
The French authorities are sick, crooked and evil, not a word I use lightly, and they are attempting to extend their influence throughout EU.
My only advice to any one who reads this is to NEVER trust the French. Saying that is a real sad shame as I have known some really good French people, but somewhere they have it very badly wrong as a nation.
Any French person who would triy to explain different to me can eat lead… don’t bother… salopards.
Mish, what happened to your usual post on Atlanta FED GDPNow update? I guess you are going to ignore it since it goes against your perennial “We’ve been in a recession for 3 months already” theory. Either that or they are now in on the conspiracy?
“We’ve been in a recession for 3 months already” theory.
We have been in a depression since 2008. The FED has been at ZIRP because the economy has never recovered. The employment participation rate is near 30 year lows.
Subtract debt from GDP. Growth is an illusion.
That is a cop out argument. Mish has been arguing that an “Official” statistical recession has already started and would be evident in the official GDP numbers for a long time now. He loves to tout Atlanta Fed estimates when they show close to recessionary numbers and conveniently forgets them when they show higher numbers. At lease admit when you are wrong if you want to have any credibility from rational people (not the cult followers).