Economy migrants: how France has left the German employers take power in Europe

Since the wage restraint of the early 2000s, until Angela Merkel's decision to host hundreds of thousands of migrants on its territory in 2015, the influence of the proposals of the German employers on the entire European construction appears disproportionate.

Atlantico: Economic policy, migration policy, the German government is regularly accused of following too closely the recommendations of its management. Is it pure fantasy? What is the reality of the situation? What are the political consequences of the European perspective?

Nicolas Goetzmann: The influence of German employers already raises the question of German influence in Europe. If originally, the European project has been thought to the size of the FRG, a nation among others in Europe, reality is built around a unified Germany, dominant because of its size. What has changed the contours of the European operation based in a country that became the "leader" natural. On a second level, it is necessary to look at what are the groups with the most influence on the various German governments.

And here, the German employers' influence has well helped shape a wide shot of the German domestic politics, which has affected the whole of Europe. When the Schröder government sets up the famous Agenda 2010, it will conduct a large policy of wage moderation before appointing Peter Hartz, Director of Volkswagen of human resources, to carry a set of measures to fight against the "voluntary unemployment". The voice of business is heard widely, and they applaud. This path will be continued throughout the 15 years that followed. This economic policy will have serious consequences on the European macroeconomic imbalances. Regarding the crisis of migrants, the German Employers' organizations have long alarmed the government of the problems arising from demographic deficit of the country which translates to them by a significant lack of labor. Calls for wide open borders are so many, including that of President of the German Federation of Industry at the end of 2014. The Bertelsmann Foundation and believed that the country needed to accommodate between 271 000 and 491 000 non-European immigrants annually. If it is wrong to consider that this is the only reason to accommodate a large number of migrants in 2015, Angela Merkel's decision remains consistent with the willingness of major German companies.

Because of this influence, these business organizations do have a disproportionate influence on EU policies. First, the continent's economic strategy consolidates the advantageous position of German companies on the European whole. And secondly, on the issue of migrants, it is not even a question of judging the merits of the decision by Angela Merkel, but simply to point the lack of European consensus ahead of the decision. Because a such a choice has consequences for all its partners.

To round it off, the opposition vacuum in Europe, which is characterized mainly by the absence of Francois Hollande on the stage of European power, leaves the field open to such orientation.


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