French labor unions call for more protests

French protestors blocked key sites and clashed with police Thursday as unions called for further mass nationwide protests against President Nicolas Sarkozy's pension reform plan.

With no fuel left in more than a quarter of petrol pumps, police are playing what unions dubbed a game of cat and mouse with protestors at depots and refineries in a bid to prevent the country from grinding to a halt.

"By taking the French economy, businesses and daily life hostage, you will destroy jobs," Sarkozy said, accusing trade union leaders of undermining France's fragile economic recovery.

"We can't be the only country in the world where there's a reform, a minority wants to block everyone else. That's not possible. That's not democracy," he declared, vowing tough action against rioters.

French media picked up on the contrast with Britain, which has seen no comparable mass protests despite unveiling much harsher austerity measures Wednesday with 500,000 job cuts and a rise in the retirement age to 66.

However, Bernard Thibault, the head of the powerful CGT union, said that there was "no reason to stop these protests" and "we recommend further action next week."

A final Senate vote on Sarkozy's unpopular bill is set to be sped up to make sure it happens today, a parliamentary source told Reuters.

Agencies