France Moves To End 35-Hour Work Week

PARIS (AP) -- French lawmakers took a step toward ending the country's decade-long experiment with a 35-hour work week, passing a bill that gives companies greater latitude to extend working hours.

The new law, approved late Wednesday, retains the legal limit on working hours but allows companies to negotiate opt-outs with employees. It also lets companies increase the maximum number of working days for white-collar workers to 235 per year from 218 currently.

"In theory it's the end of the 35-hour work week, but in practice it will take a while longer," said Marc Touati, head of economic research at Paris-based brokerage Global Equities.

Since the new hours are to be negotiated on a company-by-company basis, "you can't expect it to have a strong impact on French growth" in the short term, he said.

Reforming the 35-hour law was one of President Nicolas Sarkozy's headline pledges during last year's presidential campaign. Sarkozy says the 35-hour law was an economic mistake that did not create jobs as it was intended to do, but he has promised not to abolish it outright.

Wednesday's move was the latest rollback to the controversial work-share scheme introduced by a Socialist government 10 years ago. Successive conservative governments have already chipped away at it.

Waving banners with slogans like "There is life after work" and "I refuse to give my life to shareholders," members of two white collar unions protested the new law Wednesday in Paris.

"If I'm forced to work 235 days, my personal life will suffer," said demonstrator Arnaud de la Bergerie, a 27-year-old mechanical engineer. "We'll have more pay but less time to spend our salary."

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Nobody is "forcing" you to work 235 days 7/24/2008 1:16:00 PM If you don't want to work 235 days (47 5-day weeks). Then get a different job. You are NOT a slave, stop acting like you are.
Whiner 7/24/2008 2:35:00 PM 235 work days a year kinda sounds like 48-40 hour weeks with 4 weeks of vacation time. I know a lot of folks who would take that deal, me included. He needs to quit being a baby and get with the program.
Big Business 7/27/2008 7:15:00 PM Sounds like another big business taking away more benefits to me. As for not a slave and go and find another job , that is childish mentality. You work hard for your company and they take more and more away. That is what companies want so they can hire newbies at less wages and Benifits. As for Whiner comment , Duh ,even you would take the deal they are offering, why don't you take the guy before you's great advise and find a job with better bennies. Maybe you would like it to be like it was in the early 20th century before the unions gave you the benifits you now have and the companies are tryiny to take away so the CEO can make Millions off of your hard work. Instead why don't you try spending more quality time with family and friends instead of just a visit on Sunday
35 Hour week 7/30/2008 1:19:00 PM It is precisely the bargaining contract that allows union members to be paid outrageous wages without actually giving the commensurate work and skills. I work in a place where the timekeeper of Local 1814 (Longshoremen) gets paid over 40 dollars per hour and he has to be present in the plant, with the shop steward, even if there is no ship being unloaded. So what do they do for 8 hours a day? Nothing but read a book and take an 8 hour break, and get paid those outrageous wages! No wonder this country is going to the dogs.
Unions have it coming a whittle bit 7/30/2008 3:17:00 PM When I see the benefits of the public and private unions, I am very jealous. Private corporations have figured out how to get around unions and it's called offshoring of blue and white collar labour - union or not. Unions have pushed so far and even set up grandfathered benefits for their baby boomers while screwing their younger union brothers/sisters. That's not union... it's pure greed for no work. I don't agree with CEO's getting paid so much but they didn't sit on their butts to get there in the political jungle. Shareholders do rule but union pension funds have no trouble expecting companies to cut a ton of people to fatten their pensions. It's a rat race based too much on dollar than lifestyle. We are giving up our chiuldrens livlihoods for a cheap Chinese product and more money now for you to retire. Housing bust may have people finally thinking differently but I doubt it. Good luck to all older folk with their kids living with them in Western world all their lives because of this greed today.

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