THERE may be many British retirees and families heading to France to start afresh, but there is a flow of younger people heading in the opposite direction.
With one-in-four people under 25 currently unemployed the attractions of working in the UK, and specifically London, are a draw to young French people.
The Sunday Times reports that many educated young adults are heading to London because it is easier to find work, and for those with an entrepreneurial spirit easer to start a business.
As PY Gerbeau, former head of the Millennium Dome, says about starting up in France:
“If you want to achieve something, if you want to start a business or want to have a career, it is really very difficult because, first of all, you cannot work hard because the employment laws stop you from working more than 35 hours.”
There is no doubt that starting a business is a tough prospect in France, especially when money is tight in the first year or so. The paperwork involved can be a nightmare and then having to make hefty initial social security payments often sees people throw in the towel before they've begun.
I would like to add my personal view about this article. I am a young French worker in the UK (Cheltenham) and the reason why I wanted to move was not the French administration or the 35 hours. Indeed, we do moan about it but French people have always coped with such measures.
The main problem is that French employers do not leave a chance to those who really want to work.
The UK are a "meritocracy" and there is a good status for people who really want to work hard.
In France, it is more worth it to live on the dole and do nothing than to work.
I reached a status in the UK which is the one I would have had in about 6 or 7 years if I had stayed in France in a job I would have hated.
For instance, French people are astouned that London won the Olympic Games bid instead of Paris. I do not want to debate about the real reasons of this twist but whatever happened, and it is hurtful for me to say it, France did not deserve it. So sure of their glory they did not deign to fight for it.
I am not renouncing to my country, this is just a plead for it to come back to its high standards and be the France it really should be.
Guillaume
Posted by: Guillaume Barlet | 09 August 2005 at 10:12
I just thought it might be interesting to add to the comments above that as an American who lived in Tokyo for five years, I found the situation in Japan to be very similiar to what Guillaume reports on working conditions in France, with the exception of working hours. Everyone in Japan is expected to work together in solidarity until all work is finished for the day which is usually late into the evening. Most young Japanese workers rarely advance vertically within the corporate hierarchy until they have been with the firm for at least ten years, which is spent in horizontal rotations, with the theory being that they will become well-rounded generalists that are familiar with every aspect of the corporation. With lifetime employment, most Japanese workers, while frustrated at the lack of professional advancement, are secure in knowing that they will have secure employment, and even while they are not promoted for a long time, their pay increases regardless of merit, purely based on seniority.
Posted by: Kathy | 10 August 2005 at 18:01