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Roundup: Ruling Socialist party under fire after unveiling French labor reform

Xinhua, February 19, 2016 Adjust font size:

Critics from the right and even the ruling Socialist Party have condemned the proposals of French President Francois Hollande's cabinet to reform the labor code.

During a government meeting scheduled for March 9, Labor Minister Myriam El Khomri will present a draft bill to renegotiate working hours, holidays and overtime pay while maintaining the French 35-hour working week.

Speaking to the business daily Les Echos, El Khomri said: "We want the country to progress through social dialogue while better guaranteeing rights and making companies more competitive."

"The debate is going to be fierce because there is a change of philosophy," she added.

The proposed reforms drew a deluge of criticism even from the ruling Socialist Party head Jean-Christophe Cambadelis who said he could not vote for the bill in its current form.

"Everything in this bill on layoffs for economic reasons is open for debate and will be debated," Cambadelis told the news channel BFMTV.

Socialist lawmaker Yann Galut said the proposals on the reform of labor were unacceptable, and pledged a parliamentary battle to water down the government's efforts.

On the right camp, former French prime minister Francois Fillon cast doubt over "the government's democratic legitimacy" to reform the labor code.

Trade unions also manifested their anger. Speaking to iTele news channel, Jean-Claude Mailly, the head of Force Ouvriere, said: "It's an unacceptable text. We can not leave things as they are. We are ready to act with other unions against it."

On Friday, the liberal, pro-business daily L'Opinion called the reform "a blow to the right and also for the left."

However, Medef, France's main employer organization, praised the proposed reform.

"We have to unlock the labor market at all costs and balance employee fear of being fired with employers' fear to hire. This law does so and goes in the right direction," Pierre Gattaz, top official at Medef, was quoted as saying by local media.

The controversial labor reform will be discussed in the National Assembly in April. France's unemployment rate currently stands at 10.2 percent. Endit