Translation - The poor France. (Engels)

"our staff have become subject to unlimited exploatation". (it's about officials, the source-text did not mention the one who said that was speaking about something he belongs to (our staff)
"insecurity is high" (it's about precarity, not insecurity)

fonctionnaires : officials

"corvéable" : someone whom you can assign to with all kinds of chores

"licenciable" : someone whom you can fire from her/his job (which until now was impossible with an official)

"à merci", here : As often as you want, no matter why. In the proposition of law that was adopted by the French parliament lately (October 2009, as far as I can remind) eg : you're an official working and living in Northern France, your ministery tells you you've got to move to southern France, you will work less, have a lower salary, but you're obliged to accept, as if you don't (three times), you'll be fired.

"à merci" is an old expression, that was already employed talking about the middle ages, the whole expression "corvéable à merci", comes from these times, where lords could ask the "serfs" (peasants attached to the lord's lands) to perform chores as long as they (the lords, of course) wanted.

Hello Francky,

Thank you for your comment. Only that I have a few remarks to make. I have a doubt about the 2nd point you are making:
"The word precarity literally meant "precariousness", but is now used to mean existence without predictability or security, affecting material or security, affecting material or psychological welfare. It has been specifically applied to intermittent employment, sometimes plus a precarious existence", says Wikipedia. That is why I chose "insecurity."

You are right about the first point. But then the french term is quite general while in English each type of employees have different terms:
- office worker (for office);
- clerk (mainly in commerce);
- official (government);
So it would require a general term then... How about "the officials"?

I've found that "corvéable à merci" is an expression that means "subject to unlimitted exploatation", which is actually something you are describing. In a word: exploatation.

My translation has been rejected? On what grounds, may I ask? I have given the explanations for my choices and the replies to your comment, and I believe they are quite plausible ones. The issues were just a matter of word choices not grammar or something that makes my translation completely inaccurate.
I'm sorry but I cannot agree with the decision.

Hi Tzicu!

We'll wait until Tantine comes back and checks this translation, I'm not an English native speaker so that I can't tell exactly what is the more suitable term, I just don't agree with the words you used, but I may be wrong.

"insecurity" is in my opinion most of all attached to a lack of security, moreover this is a word that is used precisely by politicians as an argumentation towards people who are afraid to be robbed, hijacked or stolen their goods and or privacy,(these ones are people who live decently) more seldom it is about a lack in being provided at least with the minimum necessary to survive. In this case, precarity is more suitable than insecurity. (but it's only my "not native English speaker's" opinion)

"exploatation"? did you mean "exploitation"? (the "oa" sounds rather Romanian, am I wrong? )

I didn't mean your translation was to be rejected. Lilian may have done it for other reasons than mine, as I was rather in favor to discuss the translation personally.

Lilian, would it be possible to reset this trans to evaluation?

Thanks!

I've reset it to evaluation.
Sorry to interfere with your decision, Lilian, but I was just beginning to argue with Tzicu on some terms he used, about which I did not agree, and I was hoping to reach a consensus at the end.
Anyway, no pressure nor rush with this translation are required (I'm the requester as well)

So, I was saying "insecurity" was a term to avoid here, notably for the reasons I told above, and I would personally prefer "precariousness", or simply "poverty", that are less ambiguous terms.

"Officials" are employees of the state, they used to have a certain safety in their working contracts, before this October 2009 add to the law was accepted at the parliament. They are now feeling like little soldiers, who only have got to do what they are told if they don't want to lose their job.

Hi Tzicu, please could you edit your translation according to my remarks?

Thanks a lot!

Apart from these two terms to be switched with more suitable ones -according to what I said above-, the last sentence is to be improved as well : "under the impression- is correct, but as a bit further one can read "under the government of Vichy", the whole bit doesn't sound very well.

Hello Francky,

How is it now?

Hi! To me it seems fine, it's about the way I would have expressed it myself.

I submitted this translation request just to have an idea about the way an Englishman would say, so if you don't mind, Tzicu, we'll wait until Tantine logs in and tells us whether a native speaker would express in these terms.

Thanks!

Of course, Francky. That will do fine
Thank you.

Hi!

Sorry to bother, I found smth interesting to read about this subject here.

Thanks Freya!

According to what I could read at the link you posted, a part from this definition of "precarity" has already been posted by Tzicu (8 May 2010 16:01)

Definition :
Precarity is a condition of "existence without predictability or security, affecting material or psychological welfare. The term has been specifically applied to either intermittent work or, more generally, a confluence of intermittent work and precarious existence". So here precisely, the word "precarity can be used rather than "poverty", as it is more explicit and better matches the French version.

Hi guys,

Tantine has nog logged in for quite a while so I thought I'd pick up this translation.
The one thing that doesn't sound right in English is 'everything is going bad'. My suggestions:

- going badly
or
- going wrong
or
- going poorly

Something which is not wrong but nevertheless not very common is to say about prisons that they 'never empty'. I would suggest something like 'they are always full'.

Any comments?

Tzicu-Sem? Are you there?

Hello Lein,

Sorry for the delayed reply.
"going bad" is used in collocquial discourse, if I'm not mistaken. But if it is really not the best option then I think "poorly" is good;

What I mean tot say with the prisons is "they are never empty" - I missed the "are."

Thanks Lein,

Thanks! I've set a poll.

Je vois que le mot "désemplir" n'a son équivalent en aucune des langues ici, "vider" n'est pas tout à fait le sens recherché, mais bon...faute de grives....