BY JEAN-LOUIS SALFATI
PARIS - Some three and a half million workers staged a one day strike here October 10 in response to a call for a nation-wide walkout of public workers made by seven national trade unions.
The massive strike was in protest of a government- imposed wage freeze for 1996; the restructuring and privatisation of public services including rail and air transportation, gas and electric services, and the postal and telecommunications industries; and threats to the retirement benefits of public workers.
The strike included large numbers of workers in various state-run public services who are not considered civil servants including rail, gas, and electric workers; air traffic controllers and workers at the two state run airlines, Air France and Air Inter; workers in the Paris subways and buses; as well as production workers in some armaments factories, and in aircraft and aircraft engine production.
"This shows that workers are nervous about the privatisation plans but that there is no resignation," Maryse Dumas, the secretary of the CGT federation of postal workers told the press. "Fifty-six percent on strike at the Post. It's never been seen before, it's historic." More than 100 local demonstrations were organised throughout France. Police estimate more than a quarter of a million workers participated in the actions. Some 50,000 took to the streets in Paris, with 20,000 marching in Marseille and Toulouse, 16,000 in Bordeaux, and 12,000 in Rennes.
Paris and most large cities were paralyzed by the strike. In spite of an intensive campaign by the media to discredit the strikers, polls taken on the eve of the walk out showed 57 percent supporting the strike and only 25 percent opposing it. A few calls by capitalist politicians for measures to force strikers to provide minimum service, that is to restrict the right to strike, received little response.
The strike was prolonged for two extra days on the rail network serving the southeastern suburbs of Paris as railworkers continued their action to protest job conditions. On October 12, the three rail unions called for a return to work after having obtained a wage bonus of 1,000 francs ($200) and a promise from management to reevaluate job descriptions.
A growing debate has been taking place among capitalist politicians about the deepening resistance of the working class on the one hand, and the capitalists' need to raise profit levels on the other.
Prime Minister Alain Juppé's budget has been widely criticised in business circles. Presented to parliament at the end of September, the budget proposes to reduce the French government's annual 300 billion franc deficit by 60 billion.
"What this government lacks is courage," said Jean Gandois, a leading spokesperson for capitalist interests here. Most of the budget deficit reduction proposed by Juppé comes from tax increases.
"Raising taxes is not the solution for our country," complained René Monory, president of the Senate during debate on the budget. "The solution is to cut spending."
French and foreign capitalists sent a clear signal to the government after the budget was presented to parliament with the resignation of Finance Minister Alain Madelin, who had pushed for deep cuts in the social welfare system. The Paris stock market dropped, as did the franc.
The day after the public workers strike, an editorial in the business daily La Tribune Desfossés bitterly proclaimed "The unions have won." It also said, however, that Juppé has a chance to "catch up" as the upcoming debate on the social security system will give the government a chance to institute substantial structural cuts.