- Title: French union prepares for nuclear plant strike as labour protests widen
- Date: 25th May 2016
- Summary: HEADLINE OF "LE FIGARO" NEWSPAPER READING (French): "GOVERNMENT VS CGT UNION, A BATTLE OF STRENGTH"
- Embargoed: 9th June 2016 08:57
- Keywords: France protests Philippe Martinez CGT strike electricity fuel oil nuclear
- Location: PARIS, NOGENT-SUR-SEINE AND LE HAVRE, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, NOGENT-SUR-SEINE AND LE HAVRE, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Lawmaking,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA0054JB2Q87
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: France's hardline CGT union backed a 24-hour strike at a nuclear plant in the Paris region as fuel blockades continued to bite on Wednesday (May 25), in opposition to the French government's labour reforms.
At a fuel terminal in Le Havre, northern France, dockers have been on strike since Friday and vowed to continue until the Socialist government drops the proposed labour law, which aims to encourage companies to hire, but which unions say is an attack on workers' rights.
Asked on France Inter radio whether further industrial action in the country's all-important nuclear sector could cause blackouts in the run up to the Euro 2016 soccer championship, CGT leader Philippe Martinez laid the responsibility at the government's door.
"As long as the government refuses to talk, there is a risk that the movement intensifies," he said.
France has mobilised its emergency motor fuel stocks for the first time since 2010 as a result of the blockages, a spokeswoman for oil lobby group UFIP said.
So far the strikes have affected oil depots and refineries, triggering shortages, and train and metro strikes have been announced too. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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