France
France: strikes in state television and radio
Strikes by workers in the state media saw many programmes cancelled.
The planned strike at France Télévisions against 'reforms' was successful. At France 3, seems to be targeted for privatisation as it is supposedly too critical of the current government 56% of all employees joined the strike, rising to 60% in regioal centres.
French air traffic controllers continue strike
Workers at Paris' three air traffic control centres have been strking since Monday.
The strikes led to 50% of flight from Orly airport being cancelled with many others suffering delays of up to five hours. Marseille, Nice, Lyon and Toulouse airports were forced to cancel flights to Orly knowing that they would not be able to land. The Airport at Roissy was largely unaffected.
France: Carrefour strike in Marseille enters 11th day
Till staff, shop floor workers and warehouse staff have been striking for 11 days now for better salaries and conditions.
The Grand Littoral branch of Carrefour is the only one in the country to have continued action after the national one-day retail strike. As a result Grand Littoral has been entirely closed for nine of the last eleven days.
France: first suicide in new youth prison
A sixteen year old boy hung himself in his cell on Saturday.
The youth was being held in an établissement pénitentiaire pour mineurs (EPM penitentiary establishment for minors.) in Meyzieu. This EPM was the first in the country and since its opening it has been plagued with problems. The prison authorities kept the news from other inmates until Monday "to avoid an explosion". So far five of the planned seven EPMs have been opened.
France: unprecedented national strike hits retail sector
According to unions up to 80% of workers in supermarkets across the country joined in the strike action on Friday.
The strike was organised by the CGT CFDT and FO unions to pressurise management over pay and conditions, specifically part-time working and holiday working in a sector employing over 636,000 people.
France: television workers to strike again
A one-day strike has been called for February 13th to protest against government plans to 'reform' public television services.
The strike has been called at France Télévisions (France 2, France 3, France 4, France 5 and RFO). Workers at other public media services such as Radio France and TV5 have been called on to join the strike. The strike has brought together all eight of the media unions (CFDT, CFTC, FO, SNJ, SITR, SNJ-CGT, SNRT-CGT and Sud)
France: striking taxi drivers protest and block roads
Taxi drivers are launching strikes and protests against government plans to liberalise the sector.
In Paris hundreds of taxis have occupied the place de la République to protest against the report. In Marseille taxi drivers have picketed roads going into the city, causing long tailbacks. In the small town of Dieppe 16 of the town's 17 taxis were striking. The strike is also being well-observed in Cannes and other towns and cities across France.
France: Strike vote at La Tribune
Staff at the financial paper have set management a deadline of 4pm today before they begin action.
The decision was taken at a general assembly of staff held on Tuesday. According to a spokesman for the unions involved: SNJ, SNJ-CGT/SGLCE and Infocom-CGT, workers voted in favour of strike action with 4 abstaining and 5 against. They are demanding that current parent company LMVH and Alain Weill CEO of its prospective owners respect the conditions that were agreed in December.
France: Areva strikers issued with summonses
31 striking workers have been issued with summonses for 'restricting the freedom to work'
80 of the 89 workers at the Montrouge site have been on strike since January 10th over plans to close the factory down. Workers have also occupied and blockaded the buildings in protest. There has been no explanation of why the 31 employees targetted were chosen.
New Caledonia: police attack striking workers
Some 400 strikers fought overnight with police who tried to prevent them occupying group headquarters.
Workers at Carsud, the bus transport system for the capital Nouméa and surrounding areas, went on strike over the dismisal of a colleague for gross misconduct. Workers began a general strike, rotating between different regions, on January 9th.
