French President Nicolas Sarkozy proposed on Jan. 9 that a third of a company’s profits should go to employees, with the same amount reserved for shareholder and investment. Such a tripartite division of profits “would have a certain coherence and logic,” Sarkozy told members of Parliament. “Those that think it’s too much should say it’s too much and. above all, why,” he added.

Sarkozy, who heads a center-right government, says his profit-sharing proposal will increase consumer buying power, a top concern of the French people as shown in numerous polls. A key feature of his reform agenda is to eliminate the 35-hour workweek, which, he said, he hopes to do before the end of the year.

Unions are expected to mobilize their members for a full-scale battle to retain the 35-hour workweek. Both the government and the unions are preparing for a showdown on this hot-button issue, with some liberal politicians hoping for a compromise.

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German Unions Expect a Year of ‘Mega-Wage Deals’

German government and union officials are starting negotiations for the country’s 1.3 million civil servants, kicking off what the head of the country’s largest trade union predicted would be a year of “mega-wage deals.” After years of stagnation in Europe’s biggest economy, calls for substantial pay increases are growing louder — and prompting warnings from economists about the potential impact on jobs and inflation.

Verdi, the service union, and the German Civil Servants’ Federation have called for an 8 percent pay raise this year, which would represent the first increase in three years. In other sectors facing collective wage rounds, claims range from 8 percent to 4 percent. Even if the final wage settlements are lower than the demands, they could mark the first time that pay has risen faster than inflation‹currently over 3 percent‹in several years.

The unions can count on widespread political support for their wage demands. In a year dotted with important regional elections, politicians of all parties have matched enthusiastic calls for generous pay deals with criticism of excessive executive compensation. “Where there is a margin for maneuver, employees should benefit from adequate income rises,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel said this month, breaking with a tradition of governmental non-interference in wage negotiations.

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Four U. S. Presidential Candidates Each Win One State

The election contest for President of the United States showed no sign of a clear front-runner, among both Democratic and Republican candidates, with four of them winning one state each. On the Democratic side, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois won the Iowa Caucus with 39% of the vote with John Edwards, a former North Carolina senator, taking second place with 30% and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, a close third with 29% of the vote. But Clinton staged a surprising comeback in the New Hampshire primary, winning that state with 39% of the vote, largely through a late surge of sympathetic women voters. Obama was second with 36% and Edwards was a distant third, with 17%.

There were surprises in the Republican contests. Mike Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, won the Iowa Caucus, with strong support from evangelical organizations, defeating Mitt Romney, former Massachusetts governor, by nine percentage points (34% to 25%). Senator John McCain of Arizona captured the New Hampshire Republican primary with 32% of the vote, defeating Mitt Romney (28%) and Huckabee (12%).

Within two weeks, there will be important elections in four states that may change the relative standing of the candidates in both parties: Michigan (Jan. 15), Nevada (Jan. 19), South Carolina (Jan. 26) and Florida (Jan.29). But the decisive contests will come on “Super Tuesday” (Feb. 5), when more than 20 states, including, New York and California, will chose their most favored presidential candidates in both parties.

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In Turkey, Husbands May Be Fired in Cases of Domestic Violence

The wage of a husband will be paid to his wife if he resorts to domestic violence, and he can lose his job if the violence persists, according to an agreement between the Turkish municipality of Bostanici and Genel-Is, the trade union for general service workers. The collective agreement also provides one day off for all workers on May 1, international workers’ solidarity day and another day off for all female workers on March 8, international women’s day. Both days are not yet recognized as official holidays.

The agreement reflects increase gender awareness within Turkey’s labor movement and among its women. District mayor Gulciban Simsek is one of Turkey’s 19 women mayors out of a total of 1,234. Although poorly represented in local and national politics, Turkey’s women show increased zeal for extending their rights and degree of participation. A similar contract was signed by the Viransehir municipality in Sanliurfa at the beginning of the year.

Mayor Simsek, whose municipality has a population of 14,500, said: “Violence is not only being beaten. There are economic and psychologic violence, and this is most seriously experienced by women.” Violence against women is a “problem all over the world,” she said. “There are laws in Turkey but they are not applied. A woman goes to the police and meets with men; she goes to the prosecution and is confronted by men. That is why everyone must work towards developing the consciousness that women have rights.”

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Zimbabwe Teachers Demand $526 Million Salaries per Month

With Zimbabwe’s current inflation reaching a mind-blowing rate of15,000, the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) said the government had to pay teachers a salary of Z$526 million a month, including allowances, or face a crippling strike when schools open Jan.15.

In a circular to union members, Raymond Majongue, PTUZ secretary general, said the ever-increasing cost of living in Zimbabwe had forced the union to revise its salary demand upwards. At present, the lowest-paid teacher is taking home a paltry Z$15 million, enough to buy seven loaves of the cheapest quality bread.

Strikes by teachers demanding higher pay and better working conditions are common in Zimbabwe. The southern African country is in the grip of a severe economic crisis that has reflected itself in rampant inflation, massive joblessness and poverty. Thousands of teachers have quit their jobs to look for menial jobs, mostly in South Africa. or emigrated to Britain and Australia.

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Mexico’s Campesinos Join Fight Against NAFTA

Mexico’s campesino organizations announced their active support for a “front of struggle” against the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which has enabled U.S. corporations to drive these indigenous farmers from their small plots of land and has transformed millions of them into jobless workers. The campesinos will voice their protests against their government’s signing of the trade agreement with demonstrations across the country, including a massive rally in the nation’s capital on Jan. 31.

Their objective is to force Congress to use its constitutional right to renegotiate NAFTA, which has ruined the population of the nation’s countryside. Support for the campesinos has come from the Mexican Electricity Workers Union, the Teachers’ Union and the Mexican National Front, as well as several social movements.

Leaders of the campesino groups denounced about 30 foreign companies that now control the export of Mexican farm products and aim to eliminate national producers.

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