The question is simple: Is it necessary to speak French on a school or highway construction site?
This question, which has been stirring the political class for months, has seen several regional presidents from the Republican Party choose to answer in the affirmative.
In the Alpes-Maritimes, it is the Departmental Council that has decided in this direction. Can you imagine that Eric Ciotti might have been outflanked on his right?
They patriotically called it the “Molière clause,” but in fact, it is hypocrisy regarding its official aim (to allow foreign workers to understand safety directives and instructions!) and a wink to the far-right electorate in political terms.
But this deceit did not last long; the prefects were instructed to ban the measure through a ministerial directive signed by Myriam El Khomri (Labor), Michel Sapin (Economy), Mathias Fekl (Interior), and Jean-Michel Baylet (Territorial Development): the so-called “Molière clause” is “illegal” as it contradicts European law regarding the posting of workers and the free provision of services. It “cannot be legitimately claimed to protect workers, given the guarantees provided by European and national law,” explains the directive.
Furthermore, the four ministers specify that national law already organizes “the fight against illegal work” and “the irregular employment of posted workers.”
In response, the European Employment Commissioner Marianne Thyssen declared on March 19 that the “Molière clause” was a “discrimination,” also recalling that “while measures to protect workers may be legitimate,” they must not create “direct or indirect discrimination against economic operators and workers from other Member States.”
