France: No improvement in the economy is possible without an improvement in the employment rate

France has an abnormally low employment rate, which to a quite large extent can be attributed to low labour force skills. The French economy cannot improve as long as the employment rate remains low: The level of potential GDP is low, leading to chronic difficulties with public finances and foreign trade and therefore high structural unemployment; Primary income inequality (before redistribution) is high, hence the need for large-scale redistributive policies, creating a vicious circle since these policies lead to a high tax burden that weakens the employment rate even more.