Eszter-Petronella SOÓS PhD

Category: articles

  • 42. French Labor Code overhaul announced – but isn’t it too late?

    The French Labor Code is legendary: legendarily long (3800 pages) and legendarily complex. No wonder that President Hollande announced earlier in October that his government would revamp the labor legislation. It was, without a doubt, time. The details were announced this week: the legal workweek would remain 35 hours long, but companies would have some…

  • 41. President Marine Le Pen?

    A socialist MP, Malek Boutih has just scared everything out of his fellow socialists. In an interview he declared that Marine Le Pen was going to be the next president of France. It’s done, finito, fait accompli. Is he right though? Should we get used to a “President Marine Le Pen”? How far is the…

  • 40. Here’s why the social conference is a symptom of the Hollande presidency

    The 4th social conference of the Hollande presidency took place at the beginning of this week. While it is safe to say that policy-wise there is nothing major to report on (a minor Labor Law “clarification” is promised, though), the social conference is worthy of our attention: it is a symptom and symbol of the…

  • 39. Why the French economy matters – more than you think

    Common wisdom says that incumbents get reelected more easily when the economy is booming. Also, they are more often fired by electors when the economy is in trouble. A whole series of 2008 incumbents can confirm this: the Republican Party (and John McCain) in the U.S., the Labour Party (and Gordon Brown) in Great Britain,…

  • 38. What’s the problem with Google in France?

    A few weeks ago, French Senate lawmakers adopted an amendment to the so-called Macron law that would force Google to advertise three of its competitors on its site and on its search results page. This is not an amendment likely to enter into force, as the government opposes it, nevertheless, this is a remarkable new…

  • 37. Charlie Hebdo: a clash of civilizations?

    In this moment, many Europeans think that Huntington’s “clash of civilizations” thesis was right – especially those who react to the Charlie Hebdo murders the most emotionally. Are they right? Or is it a self-fulfilling prophecy? This is a serious issue we have to debate, openly, honestly, publicly. Muslims, Christians, Atheists… Of course, not everybody refers…