BEIJING, Oct. 20 (Xinhuanet) -- Polls indicated
limited support for striking French transport workers Friday as some unions
returned to work on the second day of a protest against government plans to do
away with some retirement benefits.
The country's biggest strikes in 12 years have sent
their message ！ that President Nicolas Sarkozy's attempt to trim coveted worker
protections in France's economy will not be easy.
But more trains, buses and subways were running
Friday as unity among organized labor's ranks splintered, with several
unions putting off a decision about whether to press on with wide-scale walkouts
until next week. Authorities said Paris bus service and train traffic across
France would be virtually back to normal Saturday.
The labor dispute centers on Sarkozy's plans to scrap
retirement privileges for workers in physically demanding jobs, such as miners
and train drivers, but also for workers at the state bank and national opera
house. They are able to retire earlier ！ and on more generous terms ！ than the
vast majority of France's working population.
"The government's strategy is both firm about the
goal of reforming special regimes, and open ！ with a hand extended ！ to dialogue
with electricians, gas industry workers, railway workers and public transport
workers," Sarkozy told reporters in Lisbon, Portugal, at the end of a two-day
European Union summit. "I'm committed to this reform, and we'll do it."
The government says the privileges cost too much and
are unfair; workers fearing unemployment lines resist any erosion of the labor
protections that have long underpinned France's economy.
The reform is one piece of Sarkozy's broader plans to
change the way the French work, and one that enjoys support from most voters.
Others, such as changes to hospital staffing and public sector job cuts, are
more sensitive.
(Agencies)
