France: Trains halted, schools shut as unions fight pension reforms

A woman walks past a deserted tramway stop in Strasbourg Tuesday. Pic/AFP

French unions stepped up their fight against President Emmanuel Macron's pension reform plans on Tuesday as most trains came to a halt, fuel deliveries were disrupted and schools shut on the sixth day of nationwide strikes. This is a critical time for the government, which is hoping the reform can be adopted by parliament by the end of March.

To increase pressure on lawmakers not to raise the pension age by two years to 64, unions said there would be rolling strikes this time, which could go on for days, including at oil refineries and railways. "We will continue until the reform is withdrawn," the head of FO union, Frederic told RTL radio. Garbage collectors and truck drivers joined the strike, in a sign the protests were spreading to more sectors.

Also Read: Those who poisoned schoolgirls deserve death: Iran's supreme leader Khamenei

Power production was reduced, fuel deliveries and refining were disrupted and many teachers walked off the job. Rallies are planned across France after more than 1.27 million people took part in previous protests on Jan. 31. There were reports of students blocking schools while BFM TV showed workers abandoning cars on the road near Amiens. "Together...let's bring France to a halt!," the country's main unions said in a joint statement.

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever