Serge Foucher, the head of Sony in France, was taken hostage on March 12th by factory workers seeking better severance terms. They shut him in a meeting room and barricaded the plant with huge tree trunks. Released the next day, Mr Foucher seemed to take things in his stride. "I am happy to be free and to see the light of day again," he said.rnBusiness people in France are not amused. They note that the authorities did not ask the police to free Mr Foucher. Instead, the local deputy prefect accompanied him into further talks with the workers, who got what they wanted: a better redundancy deal. It all confirms France's general lack of sympathy for business, complains one executive.
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