Why don't the French want to work?

Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 11:46 AM
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 23,763
Likes: 0
Received 6 Likes on 1 Post
Why don't the French want to work?

Or do they? It looks like this question will never be settled.

http://reneekaplan.carnets.liberatio...essed-fantasy/
kerouac is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 11:48 AM
  #2  
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 78,320
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
My French son saw this last week and laughed - I said it could not be true - he said it was - makes sense to me but how to enforce?

Bravo to the French I say - more vacations, etc - too bad they can sustain this largess in today's more and more internationally competitive world.

Thanks for posting.
PalenQ is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 12:19 PM
  #3  
 
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 17,268
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
"Or do they?"

So why does all France-to-Britain migration happen among people who want to work? While almost all Britain-to-France migration happens among people who've done as much working for someone else as they want?

Whatever quaint fantasies about French "work/life balance" American francophiles want to invent, France's's economy is going to hell in a handbasket and the single French invention of the 20th century that's done most for ambitious young Frenchpeople is the Eurostar to London.

Where we don't invent fatuous "agreements" to turn off Outlook at 6 pm. And don't invent non-existent conspiracies among foreigners to diss us.
flanneruk is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 12:36 PM
  #4  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Haven't you ever heard of Corrine Maier?

Here's an interview she did for NY Magazine:

http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/people...igencer/12024/
bvlenci is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 12:37 PM
  #5  
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 78,320
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
"The French are coming!
The French are coming!

Said Flanner Revere!
PalenQ is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 12:40 PM
  #6  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I myself would rather have August off than own a Caddy. I wouldn't even take a Caddy as a gift. Oh, wai! I suppose I could sell it and pay for my August holiday.
bvlenci is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 12:55 PM
  #7  
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 22,939
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Flanneruk,

I guess you one of the plotters, which is to be expected.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/11/op...st-france.html
Michael is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 12:58 PM
  #8  
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 22,939
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
And for a direct comparison:

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/201...into-the-sand/
Michael is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 01:01 PM
  #9  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 23,763
Likes: 0
Received 6 Likes on 1 Post
Flanner, the young French are going everywhere, and Britain is not at the top of their list -- Canada, the US, Germany, Australia, the Middle East, etc.

Normally it is considered to be proof that a country is dynamic when the young people go abroad to get some professional experience. The vast majority come back after 1, 2, 5, 10 years, and that is fantastic.

I have not read very much about where the dynamic young Brits are going, but I'm sure you must know.
kerouac is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 02:16 PM
  #10  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 1,086
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
LOL, an American, a Brit and a Frenchman in a bar trying to understand each other and thinking the only difference between them is a language barrier.

There is a vast cultural difference between them as well and that is why it is very hard for them to understand each other.

An American or a Brit or a Frenchman cannot really make any intelligent comments about either of the others without having a very good understanding of the other one's culture.

I have no difficulty understanding why a French union would push for such a thing or why an American would see it as crazy. The Brit would just say it was stupid out of envy.
dulciusexasperis is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 02:59 PM
  #11  
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 78,320
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I have not read very much about where the dynamic young Brits are going, but I'm sure you must know.>

U S of A of course!
PalenQ is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 03:33 PM
  #12  
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 2,317
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I think some of you have forgotten what it means to be young. The ambitious youth -- from no matter what country -- have always sought their fortunes on other shores. Many of them will be back. Others will travel back and forth, always. That's today's world.
toupary6 is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 08:33 PM
  #13  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 23,763
Likes: 0
Received 6 Likes on 1 Post
U S of A of course!

Right! That's because they have no language skills.
kerouac is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 10:15 PM
  #14  
 
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 8,247
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I assume that those fantasizing about the correlation between working long hours and having a solid economy never bother to look at OECD statistics or elsewhere:

http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2009/05/art1full.pdf

You can skip the long explanatory texts and go to the last page.
Among the "Western" economies compared, Germany, Norway and the Netherlands work the fewest hours. France is in the middle range.

Paid vacation leave and paid public holidays combined, I'll be away from the office for 43 days in 2014 (not counting Saturdays and Sundays which are off anyway) - like every other employee in Bavaria. Which translates to almost 9 weeks off.
Cowboy1968 is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 10:53 PM
  #15  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 20,911
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Blimey, surely we all know about "presentee-ism" today. One of the things Germans reproach the Brits for is not actually working all that intensively during the extensive hours so many people proudly report for themselves. Why do you think there aren't that many Germans on this message-board ?
PatrickLondon is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 11:11 PM
  #16  
 
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 8,247
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
LOL - touché
Cowboy1968 is offline  
Old Apr 22nd, 2014, 11:29 PM
  #17  
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 25,422
Received 4 Likes on 4 Posts
When I ran a French plant I had to introduce the concept of a weekly working lunch (properly catered of course) as that won us enough time to find out what problems the staff had. The benefits, especially on safety were fantastic. Until they then they worked very hard at what they had to do, such concepts as team work were just off the scale.

Still Americans, Brits and Germans all have their quirks.
bilboburgler is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Original Poster
Forum
Replies
Last Post
PalenQ
Europe
11
Mar 24th, 2014 06:46 AM
PatrickLondon
Europe
29
Jun 16th, 2007 07:07 PM
rlr
Europe
38
Aug 20th, 2003 01:16 PM
Mattie
Europe
11
Aug 28th, 2002 08:15 AM
Jay
Europe
10
Jul 7th, 2002 05:37 AM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are On


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -