You want me to pay how much??

The other day, I came across this image in Ouest-France, showing the average hourly cost of employing someone in each of the European countries.  It came as no surprise to me that France was one of the most expensive in Europe, coming in at 34.20€ per hour. When you compare that to the 3-8€ per hour that it costs in the Eastern block countries, is it any wonder so many French companies have been tempted to relocate East?

I have certainly seen the higher effect of these wages on my customers - more and more and preferring to use temp workers instead of hiring people on the famous CDI like they used to. Even though temp workers cost more per hour, with the way the market fluctuates, it is still cheaper to go that route than to have to let people on permanent contracts go during slow periods.  It is having a big effect on me since the temps aren't trained and often don't stick around long enough to even be trained, so you are always dealing with new people who don't know what's going on and who often don't care.

I also work with a lot of small, family businesses, and I know they are anxiously awaiting the results of this election. Everyone is worried about what will help - some what things to change, others are worried that it will. I try not to talk French politics with my customers, so instead I just sympathize about the difficulties of running a small business in today's economy. I imagine my industry isn't the only one dealing with this issue, and that there are people all across France waiting to see what will happen tonight....