PARIS, France (PNN) - July 9, 2012 - France enjoyed a boost in investor confidence with a successful bond auction Monday, but also got a warning from the president that growth so far this year is "nil" and that the country needs to rethink its social model.

France's borrowing costs have been dropping in recent months as those in neighboring Spain have soared, raising fears that it, too, will need a bailout.

France, the No. 2 economy in Europe, has high debts of its own and 10% unemployment, as it struggles through the Second Great Depression.

"Everybody knows that in the first half of the year growth will be nil. So we need to mobilize all our forces, all our imagination, all our capacities to achieve lasting growth for the years ahead," French President Francois Hollande said Monday at a conference with labor and business leaders meant to lay the groundwork for new jobs policies.

Among Hollande's proposals is a special new job contract under which employers would get tax breaks if they hire a young person and keep an older employee at the same time, instead of choosing one or the other.

Hollande said he wants the constitution to require politicians to consult with unions before making any major labor decisions. "No law from the domain of economic and social life will be able to be voted on by Parliament without a phase of dialogue and consultation prior to (the vote)," he said.