We do not agree with everything the authors say in general, but we reproduce this article for reference and making the history of french trade unionism more accessible.
The CGT pretends to be a threat to the government, but this is just a disguise in order to maintain their role of shepherding the flocks of its supporters all the better to have them fleeced. Far more than probably anywhere else in the world (other than dictatorships, or semi-dictatorships) the unions in France are very much an intrinsic part of the state and work as a central part of the management of capital. The union question is probably the most central question facing any would-be social movement in France that doesn’t want to end up repeating old mistakes and being inevitably defeated.