To end mistrust, this disease afflicting the French
Astronomical. "Up to 240 annual smics!" Is outraged our colleague Humanity 2010 on remuneration of bosses of the CAC 40. They were published last week by the firm Proxinvest and nobody can ignore. As well as gains of the gods of football – which also outperform the widely – these figures fascinate the public. The wage scale has become a Jacob's ladder reaching to the sky, thinks it.
Yet it is not clear that these large differences are what torture the most attention. In terms of money and wellness, each social category is positioned first in terms of his entourage. According to the adage of economists, "a rich man is one who earns 100 dollars more than his brother." The "redneck" is both part of the family without being a blood relative: it is the reference iconic to which everyone is measured.
Yann Algan, Pierre Cahuc and André Zylberberg pointed out forcefully in their new book on the "French disease". The title is quite explicit: "The Making of the mistrust … and how to get out." In a country that devotes "a passion for equality", in the words of Alexis de Tocqueville, "the comparative social 'tends to become a national sport more than anywhere else.
"Group Psychology" depressed
The authors start from the observation, now classic, that France is the world champion of pessimism, as evidenced by all the international surveys. And the main reason, in their view, is the lack of collective confidence that undermines the morale of the country and its economy.
They cite the words of the writer squeaky Jules Renard, well known to students: "It is not enough to be happy, it is still necessary that others are not." They also rely on General de Gaulle, who , in his "Memoirs of Hope," written in 1970 a few months after leaving office, this was disillusioned: "Social relations are marked by mistrust and bitterness. Everyone feels what it lacks rather than what he has. "
This means if the diagnosis of our "collective psychology" is not depressed again. The analyzes and books by Alain Peyrefitte, which date back to 1980 and 1990, already denounced "a society of distrust, timid, zero sum game, where the common life is a zero sum game, or even negative-sum (if you win, I lose). "
The merit of Algan, Cahuc and Zylberberg is well to emphasize the two-elements which they believe lead to "the fabric of confidence." This is, firstly, "the school, a vertical unit," where the relationship of teacher and pupil leaves no room for group work and the sense of reciprocity guaranteed payday loan. It is, secondly, as an adult this time, the obsession hierarchical labor relations, "the professional world of the French is hierarchical in the extreme" and the result is totally against-productive .
From there, you can decline all French specificities. They have been repeatedly criticized, but here are a perfect consistency. "The cult of the degree, the social reproduction of elites" are all factors of rigidity. "The relationship between employees and managers (who) are the most contentious among all OECD countries' crippling competitiveness of" Made in France ".
Our social landscape is unparalleled in the world, with its "right to work grotesque," a tiny unionization rate (8%). Yet this very small representation, where unions are funded 80% by lack of state subsidies required contributions, "promotes a culture of conflict" and bidding. Wage negotiations are thereby completely devitalized. The practical consequence is the exceptional importance of the number of people paid the minimum wage (nearly 17% of employees, the record in Europe).
"Company locked"
The State acts as the master of all clocks: it sets the remuneration of labor as well as those of capital. Nowhere, savings administered by the state plays a less pervasive. With this ridiculous ritual of fixing "the rate of the booklet A", where the country seems to hold his breath every time.
This "blocked society", in the words of Prime Minister Jacques Chaban-Delmas, in his 1969 speech to the National Assembly has become famous, is synonymous with corporatism and clientelism. We count no fewer than 600 different pension schemes: each profession tries to preserve its status at the expense of their neighbors.
As for some 504 tax loopholes, they reflect the hard work of lobbying for a particular advantage of the state. Each defending himself, he can, because everyone is afraid. Hence the psychosis of decommissioning reached extravagant proportions: according to a TNS Sofres in October 2008, "60% of the French had – already – fear of becoming homeless."
Clearly, "restoring confidence is improving both welfare and economic performance." The authors propose a cultural revolution, with "top the list of school reform" and, at the other end of the chain, the imperative "to restore the exemplary political powers." It's now or never to discuss it.
ALSO READ:
"Competitiveness: four entrepreneurs show
"Competitiveness: why France wins