French public sector workers are on strike again today in the latest stoppages over pension reforms that will cripple rail and air transport across France.
After a "Black Tuesday" in France on May 13th, when strikes paralysed transport and shut schools, the country is braced for nationwide public sector walkouts and a 24-hour strike by air traffic controllers that will ground 80 per cent of flights in and out of French airports.
The action is a big embarrassment for President Jacques Chirac, coming on the last day of a G8 summit of the seven top industrialised nations and Russia which he is hosting in Evian.
French unions are angry over plans to make public sector workers pay into the state pension system for 40 years, in line with the private sector, up from 37.5 years at present, in a bid to stave off the looming "age-crunch".
Despite pleas by Chirac that the reform is urgent, Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin's centre-right government has struggled to convince workers already angry at a watering down of the 35-hour workweek brought in by the previous government.
A walkout by SNCF intercity train network staff was expected to leave just one train in three running. In Paris, bus and metro services will be down by 50 to 65 per cent.
Postal workers, ambulance and truck drivers, dock workers, the merchant navy, tollroad staff, tax inspectors, telecom and electricity workers are also expected to strike in a protest that will also affect some 50 towns and cities.
In Germany, thousands of workers at eastern steel plants and engineering firms are seeking a shorter working week to bring them into line with the west of the country, with strikes due to run until at least Thursday.
Workers in Austria were also readying for strikes to protest at plans to overhaul their generous but costly pension scheme.
In Italy, a strike over job cuts by the cabin staff of Italian airline Alitalia forced the flag carrier to cancel 200 flights scheduled for Tuesday.