About half of the capital city's metros were running as also about 37 percent of the national high-speed trains. Yesterday, France was paralyzed as most public transport ground to a halt. Public workers went on strike to oppose a government plan to roll back their pension privileges. There will continue to be disruptions today, rail companies said.

The stoppage marked the first union challenge to President Nicolas Sarkozy, elected in May on a platform of cutting taxes, reducing the cost of pensions, and liberalizing labor.

"I'm determined to complete this reform,'' Labor Minister Xavier Bertrand said in an interview today. "This reform is indispensable,'' he said, adding that the changes will pave the way for an overhaul of the national pensions system.

Currently, 20 million people contribute to the French pensions system. About 500,000 workers at some state-owned companies contribute less because they work fewer years. They were left out of a 2003 effort to bring the number of years worked by civil servants in line with that of the private sector. Bertrand said everyone needs to contribute equally.

The pension changes require these employees to work 40 years instead of 37.5 years in order to earn a full pension. Sarkozy wants the plan completed by 2012. Bertrand said the pension system in general will be re-examined next year.

Change Needed

Bertrand said he will meet union representatives next week.

A three-week strike in public transport that paralyzed cities across France in 1995 ended a previous government's attempt to tackle the so-called ``special regimes.''

"The special pension regimes must be reformed,'' Socialist lawmaker Laurent Fabius said on BFM TV today. "But the government must negotiate honestly.''

Yesterday, about 319,000 people at railroads, power and gas utilities, schools and the postal service failed to turn up at work in their fight to keep a special pension system that costs the state about 5 billion euros ($7.1 billion) a year.

About 21,000 demonstrators marched in protest in central Paris yesterday, city police reported. That's about a quarter of the capacity of Stade de France, where the final Rugby World Cup match will be played tomorrow. About 65,000 people marched in cities including Marseille, Rouen and Tours, unions said.

Extended Strike

Two unions at RATP, which runs public transport in Paris, UNSA and Sud, extended the strike today. RATP said in a statement that there would be "major disruptions'' for commuter trains and that about a third of the metro lines would function, with a possible "improvement'' during the day.

Some RATP operations began this morning, after coming to a near standstill yesterday. There were still no trains bringing commuters from the suburbs to the capital city today. RAPT says it normally does about 11 millions trips a day.

SNCF, the national railway, predicted "major disruptions'' in the morning, after Sud Rail and Force Ouvrier unions said yesterday they would do continue the strike.

About 37 percent SNCF's 700 fastest trains, the TGVs, are running today, the rail company said. The Eurostar train service between Paris and London is almost back to normal, while local trains are still disrupted, it said.

Anne-Marie Idrac, SNCF's chief executive officer, said the strike will cost the company about 20 million euros in terms of refunds to customer for canceled trips.

Breaking Ranks

One of the unions at the SNCF, the "Autonomous'' FGAAC, which represents about a third of the train drivers, said it has started negotiating pension terms with the company, breaking ranks with other unions.

Yesterday, all five of Paris's train stations, including the biggest commuter hub Gare Saint Lazare, were deserted, and schedule boards listed no arrivals or departures.

Thousands of pedestrians and bicycle riders dominated the streets of major cities. Demand for "Velib,'' Paris's public bicycle rental system more than doubled, BFM television reported. It normally averages 100,000 daily rentals.

The more general strike yesterday included workers at the Bank of France, the Budget Ministry, the Paris Opera and the Comedie Francaise, Electricite de France SA, Gaz de France SA, some school and university teachers, public transport and rail companies.

Fifty-five percent of the respondents in a poll published in Le Figaro on Oct. 17, said the strike is "not at all'' or "not really'' justified. It was backed by forty-three percent of those polled.

"The president was elected on a program of reforms,'' said David Martinon, spokesman for Sarkozy, on LCI television today. "He'll accomplish those reforms.''

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Rail chaos continues as French workers strike for a second day

Independent: 19 October 2007
By John Lichfield

French rail workers voted overwhelmingly last night to extend their one-day strike into a second day. The vote – against the advice of leaders of the more moderate trade unions – threatened to prolong the misery of yesterday's 24-hour protest against government plans to reform pensions for public sector workers.

However, the extended strike seems unlikely to disrupt Eurostar services carrying England rugby fans to the World Cup Final in Paris tomorrow. Four in every five Eurostar trains ran yesterday and a full, but possibly delayed, schedule is expected today.

Most commuter and long-distance trains were halted across the country yesterday as an unprecedented 80 per cent of railwaymen joined the walkout over plans to cut their special pension privileges. Smaller numbers of Métro, electricity and postal workers also took part in the one-day stoppage.

Last night, at meetings at key stations and depots in Paris and other major cities, some workers voted overwhelmingly to take a second day of action. Fewer were expected to heed this call but there will be severe disruption on the lines again this morning. Xavier Bertrand, the Social Affairs Minister, offered to meet union officials next week in an attempt to head off further protests.

The government wants to reduce the long-standing special rights which allow railway, Métro, electricity and other public workers to retire at 55, or even 50 – costing the public purse £3.84bn in pension payments this year alone.

Ministers and unions both see this as a symbolically important battle of wills which could shape the future of President Nicolas Sarkozy's social and economic reform programme.