Reforms often fail in India and France because unions can shut the country down through paralysing strikes. Why aren't they able to do so in America?
(e.g. Calcutta is a dying city because of this - a Bengali once told me).
Worker's unions are so powerful in France partly because the five biggest ones were given a special status after the occupation in WWII (because they fought in the resistance).
But they aren't so representative of the workers (and aren't so popular either).