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Monday 23 February 2009

Crime Financière de la semaine

You have to smile when someone pulls a fast one on the French government, even when it is French bankers. This story about French unemployment benefit comes from the Times.

Under French rules, the jobless are entitled to unemployment benefit equivalent to 57.4 per cent of their salary if they earned more than €1,845.88 (£1,640) a month in their last job and up to 75 per cent if they earned less than that.

Payments are made for 23 months and there is a ceiling of €6,366.80 (£5,650) a month.

In most circumstances, it is impossible for workers to receive French unemployment benefit if they have been employed in another country, but they need to do only one day of work in France to be able to make a claim there. And if they have worked less than 28 days, that claim will be based upon their previous salary.

In other words, traders earning hundreds of thousands of pounds a year in London need to do a few days' work in a fast-food restaurant or a shop in Paris to ensure a revenue of €76,401.60 (£68,000) a year for almost two years.

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