Editor's blog September 2006

“The English have a reputation for working on the black and employing unregistered labour” a local French politician told me recently. It’s true, we do, but that isn’t to say that the French don’t do it too. Even some registered artisans are not above quoting a job half on the books and half for cash.

While it makes sense to employ a registered artisan when you need to be sure that the work is up to scratch or you want a ten year guarantee - installing central heating or a new roof, for example - there is no doubt that it is tempting to go for the cheaper cash in had option when it’s just a matter of repairing a gutter or a leaky tap. “Why should just the English be whiter than white?’ one unregistered British builder complains. Fair point.

But despite the risks of using unregistered artisans highlighted in our article on P3, remember that work by non-registered labourers - French or British - takes money away from those who are legally declared, which is downright unfair considering how expensive it is to be self employed in France. Of course they can undercut registered artisans: they are not paying the astronomical social charges.

In any case, now that we Brits have a reputation for moonlighting the police are stepping up their swoops on British businesses - a friend was even stopped for driving around with building materials in his car - for his personal use.

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