Sarkozy's union blues

The images broadcast around the world were quintessentially French. The railways had stopped, and Pa...

The images broadcast around the world were quintessentially French. The railways had stopped, and Paris was at a standstill as trade unions marched through the streets. French President Nicolas Sarkozy had chosen to make his stand. It was proclaimed as a 'Thatcher moment', a turning point for the country's economy, similar to the pitched battles between Margaret Thatcher and the trade unions in the early 1980s. Unfortunately, he picked the wrong enemy. France doesn't have a union problem - it has a government problem. So far, there is little sign Sarkozy realises that, let alone intends...