Thursday, 24 November 2005PARIS (Reuters) - French rail traffic began to return to normal on Wednesday after a large majority of railway workers voted to end a nationwide strike that hit commuters.
The strike, which began on Monday evening, has added to the troubles of France's conservative government as it struggles to deal with the aftermath of three weeks of rioting by youths in poor suburbs protesting against unemployment and discrimination.
After several hours of talks with the SNCF railway operator over pay, bonuses and pensions, as well as union concerns that the company will be privatised, the vast majority of workers voted to end the sixth strike to hit the SNCF this year.
"In my opinion, the traffic will practically be back to normal (on Thursday), except for a few local problems," said Eric Falempin for the Force Ouvriere trade union.
A separate strike began late on Tuesday on the Paris Metro but has not caused serious disruption.
"We took action, and that allowed us to have talks and to make advances on certain issues," Didier Le Reste, leader of the railway branch of the CGT union, told France Info radio.
SNCF chairman Louis Gallois has said the company has been losing about 20 million euros (13.7 million pounds) a day during the strike.
Trade union officials said they welcomed the company's offer of an interim pay rise of 0.3 percent pending wage talks in January, and to hand out premiums of at least 120 euros to each employee.
French rail traffic remained disrupted, although there were fewer cancellations than on Tuesday. By mid-afternoon, service was fully assured on trains to international destinations and 88 percent of high-speed TGV trains, SNCF said.
"I walked a large stretch of the way. It just takes longer," one commuter at a central Paris train station said.
A woman at St Lazare train station said she had slept less because of the strike. "I left very early today. It is really annoying," she said.
SNCF said traffic should be back to normal in the Paris region on Thursday morning.
President Jacques Chirac called on Tuesday for talks to end the stoppage, reiterating promises that SNCF would not be privatised. Unions fear privatisation will mean job losses.
The government has shown a clear desire to avoid serious labour unrest after being shaken by France's worst urban violence in almost 40 years, led by youths in poor suburbs.
The government has already faced warning strikes by hundreds of thousands of people this autumn over low pay, an unemployment rate of almost 10 percent and falling living standards.
Reuters via swissinfo |
Thursday, 24 November 2005
swissinfo.org
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