Job rights

Anyone who has seen the French media over the last month or so will know that one of the big topics is the Contrat Première Embauche (CPE). This seeks to reduce unemployment of young people by extending the trial period to 2 years, during which they  do not have full job protection (right severance payments and so on.

Le Monde Economie (7 Feb) did a comparison of this trial period in different European countries. In Britain, it used to be 2 years, but was reduced to 1 year, the same as in (the republic of) Ireland, in 2000. (These trial periods are optional and the figure is the maximum allowed.)

Anyway, how many people know that? And why do I have to read the French press to find out?