French students are victorious. They have managed to push the infamous "first-time employment contract" ("contrat premiere embauche") out of the window.
Prime minister Dominique de Villepin, who proposed the CPE idea, is in the dog house. His authority is in tatters and his humiliation is complete. The students are no longer faced with the prospect of having to sign contracts that allow employers to give them the sack for no good reason during the first two years of employment.
Splendid. Good to know that student revolt still has the power to shake establishments. Yet it remains to be seen whether their victory was actually to their ultimate benefit.
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