How European Startups Are Battling Labor Laws For Developers and Programmers 293
Nerval's Lobster writes "The United States with its H-1B controversy isn't the only country going through that sort of immigration upheaval. As the cult of entrepreneurship spirals upward in Europe, the intricate vagaries of immigration policy on the continent are being newly scrutinized by our company-building classes. Freshly venture-backed European Internet companies want talent, and they are going to remarkable lengths to get it — but not always legally. Milo Yiannopoulos talked to whole bunch of entrepreneurs and investors in Europe about the fudges, shortcuts, workarounds and, in some cases, 'strategic decision-making' are — just about — getting their companies the talent they need. For example, one well-known Parisian venture capitalist told Milo that he knows of 'at least nine' startups in France employing developers illegally, keeping them off the books not only to avoid France's notoriously onerous labor laws but also because it would have been impossible, or simply too expensive, to import them officially."
Re:Hate labor laws? (Score:5, Interesting)
You might be a greedy scumbag, regardless of the amount of money you have already accrued. Check for the following symptoms: not wanting to pay taxes on money your employees earned for you, feeling it is totally acceptable to dumb toxic waste from your country off the coast of Somalia, or stealing from babies.
But seriously, this isn't "battling labor laws," this is breaking the law for a higher profit margin.
The laws being talked about are the ones where it is literally impossible to fire the employees unless they commit a crime. My company has an entire office full of people in Italy that do nothing because we have no more use for the facility but the local laws do not allow us to fire them. Instead we make them show up every day, for their 7-8 hours and sit in chairs and do nothing. They get paid for this. Some day they will quit and move on to other jobs and they just wont be replaced. However it's been about 3 years so far and they are still hanging around. France is even worse.
Not to mention the insane amount of paid time off many Europeans get. Honestly, I have a lot of friends in these countries. Many are out of work needlessly. If the government would unpucker its asshole and allow the crap people to be fired, the companies wouldnt be so afraid to hire new ones.
Re:Didn't want to pay prevailing wages (Score:5, Interesting)
They want to work for free but the gov says no. It's sensible, because stopping people from working for too little avoids races to the bottom and makes sure everyone gets paid enough (which in turn ensures that the economy keeps moving).
Only in a simple and sterile world where everything is linear. In truth, it is easy to find examples of free trades that do not benefit anyone. Like the addict and the heroin dealer, both sinking deeper into tragedy as a result of their (free) trade.