Organisers of the recent French unemployed protests must be pleased to find their message taken up in Germany where, stimulated by the French example, a round of demonstrations is being held this week. Yesterday, there were demonstrations in several German cities while in Berlin over 2,000 protesters braved the bitter cold in a march to the Brandenburg Gate. Figures, released yesterday, showed that unemployment has risen sharply to a new post-war record of 4.8 million. It is a difficult issue for the Kohl government in this election year, defending a doubling of the jobless total in seven years and making the case for economic and monetary union as a stimulus for growth, but in the longer term.
The French protesters have captured headlines and much sympathy for their imaginative directaction techniques. Although they play to the political programme of Mr Jospin's socialists - pledged to create hundreds of thousands of jobs through public and private initiatives and the introduction of a 35-hour week - the protesters have seriously embarrassed the government by making impatient demands which are incapable of being delivered - especially as France too prepares to qualify for EMU. The French protest leaders have sought out solidarity action from elsewhere in the name of creating a European identity. And they are getting it. The German protests are expected to materialise in at least 30 cities.
The style of protest could hardly be more different in the two countries. The French draw on a tradition of direct protest and anger over the erosion of living standards for those falling into unemployment. In Germany the protests are less flamboyant and more orderly. But they too draw on an impatience with slow growth, erosion of living standards and failure by the government to reach agreement on employment and taxation initiatives.
Such differences should not take from what these movements have in common. They identify a key issue for governments and for the European Union as it makes the transition to EMU. It does so with a substantial mandate on employment arising from a process initiated at the 1994 European Council in Essen. This culminated in the new employment chapter contained in the Amsterdam Treaty. The emphasis is on more flexible labour markets, service employment and establishing targets for employment levels. Such an approach will take years to implement and it may encounter opposition from trade unions - particularly those in the public service.
The debate is driven too by commitment to a European social model of welfare now bolstered by the United Kingdom's return to the Social Chapter. It is also driven by the imperatives of international competition and the dangers of social dumping and capital flight, about which employers' groups have warned continuously. The demonstrations show that unemployment is destined to be a crucial issue as the EU moves towards monetary union.