"Hello Laziness"
David Spiro
here often, I am not sure what to make of this. Pat, Wagg, John, and any
others, how on the mark is this woman?
This is from the NY Times.
--
David Spiro
Liver Transplant Recipient - 8/1/97
RECYCLE YOURSELF! - BE AN ORGAN DONOR
"The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the
fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science.
Whosoever does not know it and can no longer marvel, is as good as dead, and
his eyes are dimmed." - Albert Einstein
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------
A French Employee's Work Celebrates the Sloth Ethic
By CRAIG S. SMITH
Published: August 14, 2004
ARIS, Aug. 13 - Finally, instead of dissembling behind ambiguous notions of
Gallic joie de vivre, someone in this leisurely land has declared outright
that the French should eschew the Anglo-Saxon work ethic and openly embrace
sloth.
Corinne Maier, the author of "Bonjour Paresse," a sort of slacker manifesto
whose title translates as "Hello Laziness," has become a countercultural
heroine almost overnight by encouraging the country's workers to adopt her
strategy of "active disengagement" - calculated loafing - to escape the
horrors of disinterested endeavor.
"Imitate me, midlevel executives, white-collar workers, neo-slaves, the
damned of the tertiary sector," Ms. Maier calls in her slim volume, which is
quickly becoming a national best seller. She argues that France's ossified
corporate culture no longer offers rank-and-file employees the prospect of
success, so, "Why not spread gangrene through the system from inside?"
The book is a counterpoint to efforts by the country's center-right
government to repair the damage done to French work habits by decades of
Socialist administration, which enacted a 35-hour workweek. It is gaining in
popularity just as the International Monetary Fund is urging Europeans to
work longer and harder to stiffen their soft economies.
The French already work less than people in most other developed countries -
on average, nearly 300 fewer hours a year than Americans, according to one
study.
In many ways, Ms. Maier is typical of France's intelligentsia, overeducated
and underemployed. She studied economics and international relations at the
country's elite National Foundation of Political Sciences, or Sciences-Po,
before earning a doctorate in psychoanalysis.
But she works just 20 hours a week writing dry economic reports at the state
electric utility, Électricité de France, for which she is paid about $2,000
a month. Sitting in the living room of her Left Bank apartment, decorated
with colorful abstract art, huge stereo speakers and a bicycle, Ms. Maier,
40, insists that her polemic, though tongue in cheek, has a principled
point. "Can we work in a corporation and contest the system," she asks, "or
must we be blind and docile and adhere to everything that the corporation
says?"
Part of the problem, according to Ms. Maier, is that French companies are
frozen by strict social norms.
"Everything depends on what school you went to and what diploma you have,"
she said, arguing that advancement is slow and comes less from ambition than
from endurance. "French corporations," she says, "are not meritocracies."
Workers remain at their jobs until retirement, stymieing the promotion of
those below them, she argues, yet a system of patronage and stiff legal
protections make it difficult for employers to fire anyone. Years of such
stagnation in France's hierarchy-obsessed society have produced elaborate
rituals to keep people busy.
"Work is organized a little like the court of Louis XIV, very complicated
and very ritualized so that people feel they are working effectively when
they are not," she said.
Her solution? Rather than keep up what she sees as an exhausting charade,
people who dislike what they do should, as she puts it, discreetly
disengage. If done correctly - and her book gives a few tips, such as
looking busy by always carrying a stack of files - few co-workers will
notice, and those who do will be too worried about rocking the boat to
complain. Given the difficulty of firing employees, she says, frustrated
superiors are more likely to move such subversive workers up than out.
The book's title is a play on "Bonjour Tristesse," the title of the 1954
best-selling novel by Françoise Sagan that recounted a worldly young woman's
cynical approach to relationships and sex. Ms. Maier's book, subtitled "The
Art and Necessity of Doing the Least Possible in a Corporation," is
concerned with a more mundane malaise.
With chapters titled "The Morons Who Are Sitting Next To You" and "Beautiful
Swindles," it declares that corporate culture is nothing more than the
"crystallization of the stupidity of a group of people at a given moment."
Her employer of 12 years was not amused. Irritated that she identified
herself as an Électricité de France employee on the back cover of her book,
company officials wrote her a stern letter accusing her of inattention at
meetings, leaving work early and "spreading gangrene from within," just as
her book advocates. They demanded that she appear for a disciplinary
hearing, though the original Aug. 17 date has been pushed back to September.
That's because Ms. Maier is going on vacation.
"They want to make an example of me," Ms. Maier said.
When she received the letter from her employer, she did what any French
worker would do: she took it to the company union and asked them to help in
her defense. The union, already engaged in a bitter battle with management
over a partial privatization scheme, took the case to the news media, where
it received instant and widespread attention.
Without the company's maneuver, Ms. Maier's book would probably have quietly
gone out of print. Instead, her publisher, Éditions Michalon, sold out the
first printing of 4,000 copies and has ordered three successive reprints in
the past three months: 15,000 copies have been printed so far and, having
apparently struck a chord with the country's work force, demand only appears
to be growing.
She said the reaction of co-workers has been mixed, with some outraged by
her thankless attitude. "They think it scandalous," she said, "like I spit
in my soup."
yabonn
"David Spiro" <djs...@bluefrognet.net> a écrit dans le message de
news:cfnrl...@enews4.newsguy.com...
> Okay, given that the subject of the French vs. American work ethic comes
up
> here often,
Brought by whom, i wonder.
I am not sure what to make of this. Pat, Wagg, John, and any
> others, how on the mark is this woman?
>
If what she says was mainstream there would be no need to write a book.
That topic remained largely below the radar here in france, and received
this disproportionate attention in the us press because it fits well to the
stereotype of the lazy french.
No matter how many times the economic benchmarks (for what they are worth)
will say that the productivity/hour in the two country are about the same,
and that the difference resides in the holidays and free time (thus being a
*choice*) there's simply too many layers of preconceptions there to drill
trough.
> that the French should eschew the Anglo-Saxon work ethic and openly
embrace
> sloth.
Oh puhleeeze. Just after reading that, i had all my mental masturbation
alerts bells ringing at the same time. Simply couln't finish.
waggg
wrote:
>Okay, given that the subject of the French vs. American work ethic comes up
>here often, I am not sure what to make of this. Pat, Wagg, John, and any
>others, how on the mark is this woman?
>
>This is from the NY Times.
>
>--
>David Spiro
>Liver Transplant Recipient - 8/1/97
>RECYCLE YOURSELF! - BE AN ORGAN DONOR
>"The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the
>fundamental emotion which stands at the cradle of true art and true science.
>Whosoever does not know it and can no longer marvel, is as good as dead, and
>his eyes are dimmed." - Albert Einstein
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>A French Employee's Work Celebrates the Sloth Ethic
>By CRAIG S. SMITH
>
>Published: August 14, 2004
>
>
>ARIS, Aug. 13 - Finally, instead of dissembling behind ambiguous notions of
ambiguous, eh ? what does it means ? joie de vivre = paresse ?
>Gallic joie de vivre, someone in this leisurely land has declared outright
>that the French should eschew the Anglo-Saxon work ethic and openly embrace
>sloth.
>
>Corinne Maier, the author of "Bonjour Paresse," a sort of slacker manifesto
>whose title translates as "Hello Laziness," has become a countercultural
>heroine almost overnight by encouraging the country's workers to adopt her
>strategy of "active disengagement" - calculated loafing - to escape the
>horrors of disinterested endeavor.
>
>"Imitate me, midlevel executives, white-collar workers, neo-slaves, the
>damned of the tertiary sector," Ms. Maier calls in her slim volume, which is
>quickly becoming a national best seller. She argues that France's ossified
>corporate culture no longer offers rank-and-file employees the prospect of
>success, so, "Why not spread gangrene through the system from inside?"
I guess she just want attention on what she denounces, she's not craving for
chaos ...
>The book is a counterpoint to efforts by the country's center-right
>government to repair the damage done to French work habits by decades of
>Socialist administration, which enacted a 35-hour workweek. It is gaining in
>popularity just as the International Monetary Fund is urging Europeans to
>work longer and harder to stiffen their soft economies.
We weren't the first one to have the 35 hrs ... we kinda copied it on the
germans that had it for years ... and that was not due to a socialist
government that they had it.
Anyway theway it's been done in France was stupid and inadequate to many kind
of works.
>The French already work less than people in most other developed countries -
>on average, nearly 300 fewer hours a year than Americans, according to one
>study.
yep, but (anyway it was the case some yrs ago ... don't know about today) we
have a good/very good yield-capacity AFAIK ... the result is important.
>In many ways, Ms. Maier is typical of France's intelligentsia, overeducated
>and underemployed. She studied economics and international relations at the
>country's elite National Foundation of Political Sciences, or Sciences-Po,
>before earning a doctorate in psychoanalysis.
>
>But she works just 20 hours a week writing dry economic reports at the state
>electric utility, Électricité de France, for which she is paid about $2,000
>a month. Sitting in the living room of her Left Bank apartment, decorated
>with colorful abstract art, huge stereo speakers and a bicycle, Ms. Maier,
>40, insists that her polemic, though tongue in cheek, has a principled
>point. "Can we work in a corporation and contest the system," she asks, "or
>must we be blind and docile and adhere to everything that the corporation
>says?"
>
>Part of the problem, according to Ms. Maier, is that French companies are
>frozen by strict social norms.
>
>"Everything depends on what school you went to and what diploma you have,"
>she said, arguing that advancement is slow and comes less from ambition than
>from endurance. "French corporations," she says, "are not meritocracies."
I think she's right ... there is somethin' rotten in the realm of Denmark.
It seems It's a provocative way to act in ordere to shake the old stiff
strucure ... The goal is to provoke debate ... the french system in its whole
is everything but supple. maybe it's because the population gets older and
older but it needs a gust of fresh wind.
>Workers remain at their jobs until retirement, stymieing the promotion of
>those below them, she argues, yet a system of patronage and stiff legal
>protections make it difficult for employers to fire anyone. Years of such
>stagnation in France's hierarchy-obsessed society have produced elaborate
>rituals to keep people busy.
There is some truth but i don't know up to which point .
No kidding :-)
David Spiro
news:411f84f5$0$29667$636a...@news.free.fr...
> If what she says was mainstream there would be no need to write a book.
Or, perhaps all the more reason to write a book.........................
>
> That topic remained largely below the radar here in france, and received
> this disproportionate attention in the us press because it fits well to
the
> stereotype of the lazy french.
Possibly true. Or, maybe there are certain rings of truth that maybe the
French populace doesn't want to face? I don't mean about laziness, but about
the corporate structure ion France, which is what she is mainly deriding. If
you had read teh entire article, you would have knownw that.
> No matter how many times the economic benchmarks (for what they are worth)
> will say that the productivity/hour in the two country are about the same,
> and that the difference resides in the holidays and free time (thus being
a
> *choice*) there's simply too many layers of preconceptions there to drill
> trough.
>
I concede that.................
>
> > that the French should eschew the Anglo-Saxon work ethic and openly
> embrace
> > sloth.
>
> Oh puhleeeze. Just after reading that, i had all my mental masturbation
> alerts bells ringing at the same time. Simply couln't finish.
Your first mistake. Read the whole thing before you start passing judgment.
You may well be correct in your assumptions, but take the time to read it
through.
yabonn
> "yabonn" <yabo...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:411f84f5$0$29667$636a...@news.free.fr...
> > If what she says was mainstream there would be no need to write a book.
> Read the whole thing before you start passing judgment.
> You may well be correct in your assumptions, but take the time to read it
> through.
>
Allright. I tried. It's a freak show.
> The book is a counterpoint to efforts by the country's center-right
> government to repair the damage done to French work habits by decades of
> Socialist administration, which enacted a 35-hour workweek
The german, (who have been at at 35, sometimes 32), are, otoh, hardowrking
people, as every joe shmoe writing in the new york times about european
economies will confirm you.
> In many ways, Ms. Maier is typical of France's intelligentsia,
overeducated
> and underemployed.
> But she works just 20 hours a week writing dry economic reports at the
state
> electric utility, Électricité de France, for which she is paid about
$2,000
Seems like she got a good diploma and now she leverages it for spare time
instead of money. Underemployed comparing to what? Is there a standart?
Overeducated compared to what? Is there a standart? Representative of the
french intelligenstia in which way? Wtf?
> Sagan that recounted a worldly young woman's
> cynical approach to relationships and sex.
What the journo mean is, once translated :
"... because, you know, there ain't such thing as an article on france
without the sex word in it. I haven't read the book, btw".
> it received instant and widespread attention.
Translation :
"Because i'm writing my article about something important, y'know".
Afaik, it just slided rapidly along very few screens. More in the disposable
funny news department.
> "They think it scandalous," she said, "like I spit
> in my soup."
Must have been the few hard working, ethical anglo saxons of the company,
then.
... No really. Maybe i' just not in the mood, but for me, that article
simply sucks.
pat o'beur
> Okay, given that the subject of the French vs. American work ethic comes
> up here often, I am not sure what to make of this. Pat, Wagg, John, and
> any others, how on the mark is this woman?
>
> This is from the NY Times.
Yes, I've read it. (the article not the book ;) )
1- the girl is working
for a state owned company and therefore has the same civil servant's
advantages: "Can't be fired" ! ;) What will she get for this book? a bad
mark on her records. Wow !
2- the famous 35 hours per week!
2-1 it doesn't mean anything. What has to be compared is yearly hours. And
as I remember, between EU states France is in the middle. I'll get the
figures for you.
2-2 the only people I know working 35 hours a week are civil servants and
state owned employees. I (self-employed) work more than 50 hours/week, my
girl friend, Controler in a private company about the same amount...
3- Comment from an Irish reader An International Phenomenon !!!!!, 3 août
2004 Commentaire de : jackfeeney-author de a wet ditch, Cobh, Cork
Ireland. "I was amazed with this book as I thought it was only the Irish
Electricity Supply Board that was managed by incompetent management - it
is a European phenomenon. Electricity worker are paid an average of 80,000
Euros per annum and do not have to do very much!!! If we complain about
prices increases, they strike. Surely, the message should be received by
European leaders that poor management (incompetence) in endemic in the way
we supply Electricity and competition is essential. Well done Corinne,
this is a very funny insight into large dinosaur organisations and is not
just limited to France !!!!"
So right ! "large dinosaur organisations" are world wide.
4- The article:
Anything which can be used to discredit the "scape goat" is good to be
published, it's politically correct.
5- The book is ahead on Amazon.fr, the French love to laugh about
themselves but only when it's done with humour. i.e. "Sacrès Français"
written by an American journalist living in France. Conclusion: Like my
father says:
"most Americans don't know where is Canada, don't tell them..." :) I would
say the same about the French economy.
John of Aix
> Okay, given that the subject of the French vs. American work ethic
> comes up here often, I am not sure what to make of this. Pat, Wagg,
> John, and any others, how on the mark is this woman?
It's a load of rubbish but sells copies to those lazing on the beach
during the month of August. Some people are already 'tir au flanc', that
is they pretend they are working but aren't, but no more than anywhere
else and I doubt if this book will increase the number, the contrary
perhaps, for as their secrets are out and they might have more of a job
to get away with it.
laurent
useless lazy people in France just like everywhere else
"David Spiro" <djs...@bluefrognet.net> wrote in message news:<cfnrl...@enews4.newsguy.com>...
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