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French deemed 'too lazy' for Swiss recruiters

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French deemed 'too lazy' for Swiss recruiters - The Local


French deemed 'too lazy' for Swiss recruiters

Swiss recruitment firms are shunning French candidates because they are deemed "too lazy" and "arrogant" and have a penchant for ringing in sick on Mondays and Fridays, according to reports in a Swiss newspaper this week.
Published: 29 Jul 2013 15:33 CET
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The French have come under the cosh for their work ethic in recent months. In February, outspoken American CEO Maurice Taylor accused French factory workers of spending most of their time at work talking and now it is the turn of the Swiss to cast aspersions on how hard the French work.
This week, a Swiss paper provoked headlines and more soul searching in France by claiming recruitment firms in the country are shunning the French because they are perceived to be too “lazy and arrogant”.
Le Matin Dimanche reported that Swiss recruitment firms are including the requirement “Swiss or resident in Switzerland” in job adverts to avoid being inundated by French applicants.
Recruitment agencies interviewed by the newspaper say they include the condition in order to meet with the desires of their clients, who have a less than flattering view of the French.
The newspaper quotes the head of recruitment at a medium sized construction firm, who complains that the French staff are often ill on Mondays or Fridays and they have a "vengeful" attitude.
"There's always a problem. It's totally different with the Spanish and the Portuguese," the head of the recruitment tells the newspaper anonymously.
French are boycotted
Le Matin Dimanche writes that “In areas like construction… The French are boycotted: They are judged to be lazy and grumpy and pretentious by the companies".
Including a condition that stipulates candidates must be "Swiss or resident in Switzerland" is in fact against the law because of the 1999 agreement Switzerland signed with the EU over freedom of movement that requires citizens of both countries be treated equally.
To avoid breaking the laws Le Matin Dimanche said recruitment firms would often demand applicants must have a high level of German even when it is not needed, knowing this will reduce the chances of a French candidate applying.
The Swiss newspaper also claims that Swiss banks are put off recruiting French workers, because they are worried they might turn into whistleblowers.
This follows the recent case of Pierre Condamin-Gerbier, the former employee of Reyl and Cie bank, who recently handed over to authorities in Paris a list of French politicians he claimed had secret bank accounts in Switzerland.
The French work ethnic has not just come under scrutiny from foreigners.
French author Aurélie Boullet (alias Zoé Shepard) caused uproar when she published the book ‘Absolument Dé-bor-dée!’ (‘Absolutely Snowed Under!’), an ironic account of work in a fictional town hall, based on her own experience.
Boullet told The Local earlier this year that although the French did have certain issues such as an obsession with meetings, it was nevertheless unfair to criticize the work ethic of all French people.
“There’s no single work ethic in France, but rather there are many,” she said. “It depends on the people directing a company. Some [directors] inspire a real energy, instilling a “quality” approach – with regular assessments to see if the client and the public are satisfied.”


Ben McPartland (ben.mcpartland@thelocal.com)
 
But look on the bright side. France is rejecting Swiss applicants for being too anal retentive.
 
Well to be fair they are lazy and arrogance is just French culture. French bureaucracy isn't slow because it is big but rather because they are lazy. Apparently your lucky if you get some guy to fix your cable within a month. Though if they were that lazy they wouldn't be one of the wealthiest countries in thew world now would they.
 
Lol at the American CEO calling out the French. I don't have any experience with the French but I doubt they are any worse than what the average American has become.
 
I've been telling people for decades the French are no good. Glad somebody finally believes me.
 
Lol at the American CEO calling out the French. I don't have any experience with the French but I doubt they are any worse than what the average American has become.

You are correct, I am pretty damned sure you cannot get much more lazy and worthless than CEOs or middle management types here in the US. They have two speeds, nothing and screwing stuff up.
 
Well to be fair they are lazy and arrogance is just French culture. French bureaucracy isn't slow because it is big but rather because they are lazy. Apparently your lucky if you get some guy to fix your cable within a month. Though if they were that lazy they wouldn't be one of the wealthiest countries in thew world now would they.
They didn't make the top 10 according to Forbes. Switzerland did. Maybe they're on to something. In my experience, they are.
 
You are correct, I am pretty damned sure you cannot get much more lazy and worthless than CEOs or middle management types here in the US. They have two speeds, nothing and screwing stuff up.

I agree with you on that, but it doesn't end at management.
 
They didn't make the top 10 according to Forbes. Switzerland did. Maybe they're on to something. In my experience, they are.

Well if you look at wealth per capita they are 4th in the world.
 
I've been telling people for decades the French are no good. Glad somebody finally believes me.

But they saved everyone's asses in 2 world wars.....oh, wait a minute.....never mind.
 
But they saved everyone's asses in 2 world wars.....oh, wait a minute.....never mind.

Err..no..

They collaborated with the German army..even allowing the Nazi Army to march past the Arc de Triomphe.and take possession of the Champs Elysees...The French supplied the SS with addresses and names of Jewish people...
 
France to me is like the perfect representation of the last vestiges of large scale European economic leftism breaking up against the jagged impenetrable walls of a global market that cares nothing for it and never will. In that sense I pity the French. They were raised to believe and live a lifestyle that cannot sustain against stronger foreign work ethics that merge better with globalism. The French work ethic and way of viewing the world does not merge well if at all with globalism. I never actually thought French people were economically backwards until reading political forums and seeing them throw in with the lowest order of vagabond ragtag communists and the like. They really do have a basic incompatibility with globalism (which simply means capitalism). In many senses the average French person is more ideologically red than the average Chinese communist member that runs their own business. This is ironic but very telling to Frances decline. The French actually believe in their leftism whereas the Chinese Communist card carrier does not.
 
Okay, let's be serious here.

There's been a growing backlash in the Swiss cantons bordering France against French residents who cross the border every day to work in Switzerland. The reasons why they seek work here are obvious. Our salaries are often up to three times higher than theirs. Local populist political parties have been calling for years for a reduction in French workers. Since the cost of living in France is so much lower, they come here and are willing to work for half the money a Swiss citizen needs. Obviously, Swiss companies were very happy at first to be hiring employees who were willing to work for peanuts (Swiss peanuts, of course, which everyone knows are made of pure gold). This made Swiss citizens really angry as they saw all those French workers as "stealing their jobs".

Now, according to the newspaper in question, of which I happen to have a copy right here on my desk, this new trend of avoiding French nationals is mostly affecting the banking/financing industries. The work ethic in this industry is extremely strict and demanding even by Swiss standards. Call it anal-retentive if you're so inclined, but the Swiss work ethic and the French work ethic (if such a thing even exists LOL!) are not exactly compatible. I'm not surprised employers in this particular industry are starting to avoid French applicants.
 
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You are correct, I am pretty damned sure you cannot get much more lazy and worthless than CEOs or middle management types here in the US. They have two speeds, nothing and screwing stuff up.

Do you even have a job? LOL!!
 
many times enough to know that middle and upper management are often as useless as a broken square bowling ball.

I guess that's why those companies are so successful, because middle and upper managers are lazy. :roll:

Why don't you just come out and say that you hate private businesses?
 
Rather than sniping at the work ethic of French workers, perhaps Maurice Taylor could focus on such matters as fully funding his company's pension funds. From its own 10-K report from 2012:

Titan’s projected benefit obligation at December 31, 2012, was $139.1 million as compared to $112.0 million at December 31, 2011. The Company’s defined benefit pension plans were underfunded by $60.9 million at December 31, 2012.

http://titan-intl.com/files/Annual_Report/JK_FINAL_AnnualReport.pdf
 
I guess that's why those companies are so successful, because middle and upper managers are lazy. :roll:

Don't forget stupid and useless. All those comedies who make fun of management doing absolutely useless stuff are so off base and have absolutely no truth to them at all, and that is why people find them so insightful and humorous.
Why don't you just come out and say that you hate private businesses?

Yeah, it has to be because I hate private business and not because there are a ton of really useless people out there. That is totally it. BTW, i do have to ask, are you taking this personally for some reason like perhaps you are middle management?
 
Err..no..

They collaborated with the German army..even allowing the Nazi Army to march past the Arc de Triomphe.and take possession of the Champs Elysees...The French supplied the SS with addresses and names of Jewish people...

"They" being the French government. A large percentage of the French populace was heavily involved in the resistance.
 
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