Presidential Ambitions and Student Riots in France

For weeks, French students have been protesting a new labor law that allows for some workers under the age of 26 to be fired at will during their first two years of employment (France has strong rules protecting workers against dismissal). In the last few days, the labor unions connected with France's Communist Party have begun to side with the students. There have even been calls for general strikes, an escalation of the general labor militancy found in France. French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin at first refused to back down, heightening the crisis.

This kind of crisis is common in France. The conflict has reminded many of the standoff between French students and workers against Charles de Gaulle in the late 1960s. One possibility for why de Villepin has been so intransigent is that he sees himself as another de Gaulle. In fact, de Villepin is trying to raise his credibility among French conservatives who are hostile to the labor unions (a trait he shares with de Gaulle) because France will be holding a presidential election next year. De Villepin is staking his claim as de Gaulle's successor and trying to distinguish himself from his first round opponents from his own and other right parties. A victory over the unions would have essentially guaranteed him a free pass into the second round of the election.

 Unfortunately for de Villepin, the idea has proven so unpopular with the French public that he has been forced to consider changing the law. He wants to find a compromise, perhaps by shortening the two year period of the law. However, doing so will be viewed as caving to the unions, which will be a major buzz kill in the election.

UPDATED 3-27-06 with some news story links and corrected title.