French government threatens to shut firms employing illegal immigrants
By Antoine Lerougetel
5 December 2009
The French government's November 22 announcement of draconian regulations against undocumented immigrants (sans-papiers) lays the legal basis for pogroms against hundreds of thousands of workers, as well as the firms that employ them. Between 200,000 and 400,000 sans-papiers live in France, largely working the worst-paid jobs in construction, restaurant and service industries.
The minister of immigration and national identity, Eric Besson, and Labour Minister Xavier Darcos announced the new regulations in separate statements.
Darcos announced that préfets (regional law-enforcement chiefs) would receive powers to shut down firms employing illegal immigrants. He added that the government will “reinforce inspections and apply sanctions hitting the wallets and the image of the firms in order to act as a deterrent.“
Besson told France 5 TV that it will be “a complete arsenal” against abuses, including “the administrative closure of establishments employing illegal foreigners” or “inelegibility for any offers of contracts for all firms,” public or private having employed sans-papiers. Increased fines and demands for the “reimbursement of public aid” will be imposed on offending enterprises.
With stunning cynicism, Besson tried to present the regulations as motivated by concern for sans-papiers: “If foreigners are exploited on our soil by mafia networks, it's also because there are employers and exploiters on our soil who take advantage of their situation.”
He said he would inform préfets of three conditions required for a sans papier to obtain a residence permit: presence in France for over five years, having declared to the authorities a request for residence rights at least a year previously, and working in a sector with difficulties recruiting labour. He set a quota of a mere 1,000 workers who could fulfill these extremely restrictive conditions.
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