A French birth-control-driven labor shortage fueled immigration for conscription

Evidence

France had over one million migrant workers by 1881. Most carried out unskilled manual work in agriculture, mines, and factories. The peculiarity of the French case lies in the reasons for the shortage of labor: birth rates fell sharply after 1860, as peasants, shopkeepers, and artisans adopted birth control. Keeping the family small meant that property could be passed on intact from generation to generation. France therefore saw relatively little overseas emigration during industrialization, and rural-urban migration was also limited. Labor immigration played a vital role in the emergence of modern industry. It was also seen as important for military reasons. The Nationality Law of 1889 was designed to turn immigrants and their sons into conscripts for the impending conflict with Germany (Schnapper, 1994). From the mid-nineteenth century to the present, the labor market has been regularly fed by foreign immigration, making up, on average, 10-15 percent of the working class. Noiriel estimates that without immigration the French population today would be only 35 million (instead of over 50 million) (Noiriel, 1988:308-18). — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 3855 (#expands, via linked claim)

Although outright coercion was not used, a variety of more subtle constraints limited the mobility of the foreign worker; these included identity cards, work permits that tied workers to specific jobs, and the threat of expulsion. — Alice L. Conklin, A Mission to Civilize_ The Republican…, 1425 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: French birth-control adoption created a labor vacuum filled by immigration — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 3855; Prewar France had a large unassimilated immigrant labor population — Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 2480; France restricted immigrant workers via permits, identity cards, and expulsion threats — Alice L. Conklin, A Mission to Civilize_ The Republican…, 1425 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• French birth-control adoption created a labor vacuum filled by immigration #expands (0.95) — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 3855
• France restricted immigrant workers via permits, identity cards, and expulsion threats #complicates (0.75) — Alice L. Conklin, A Mission to Civilize_ The Republican…, 1425