All things considered, the controversy over which professions are authorized to work on Labor Day is reminiscent of the disputes that spoiled the end of François Hollande’s five-year presidential term (2012-2017). Passed on February 17, 2015, without a vote (due to the use of Article 49.3 of the Constitution), the bill for economic growth and activity championed by Emmanuel Macron, who was then economy minister, aimed to liberalize the French economy. Provisions to liberalize working on Sunday deeply divided unions and the left, forcing Hollande to step in, just as a contest over who would be the most pro-business was underway between then-prime minister Manuel Valls and Macron.
Today, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has taken up the role of mediator regarding Labor Day. The PM faces rivalry between the right in the Sénat and a faction of the Renaissance group in the Assemblée Nationale, led by former prime minister Gabriel Attal, foreshadowing the 2027 presidential battle. In the name of defending the value of work and boosting purchasing power, now the top concern for the French, the goal is to break as many taboos as possible, even if it means a direct confrontation with the unions.
The bill, supported by both sides, sought to extend the right to work on Labor Day to a substantial number of professions, including food shops and entertainment-related activities, provided that voluntary employees working that day receive double pay. Unions and left-wing parties unanimously condemned the proposal, seeing it as a direct attack on a symbolic public holiday, won through workers’, sometimes deadly, struggle in the fight for their emancipation.
You have 69.7% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.
