A "hot autumn" in France?

France is likely to be facing a "hot autumn", the daily Le Monde warns. The trade unions feel ridiculed by the French president and may decide to make life difficult for him: "What social game is Nicolas Sarkozy playing? ... On 5 July his allies in the National Council of the UMP gave him a standing ovation when he declared: 'From now on if there's a strike in France no-one will notice'. That is tantamount to a slap in the face for the trade unions. The social climate remains sensitive. Although it is not certain whether the autumn will be as conflict-ridden as the trade unions are promising, they may find other ways of showing how fed up and mistrustful they are. ... For example they could resort to a new weapon: striking on social compromise. They could simply refuse to reach agreement and that would put more than a small spanner in the works of the reforms."

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