Air France’s pilots ended their four-day strike on Tuesday, protesting the proposed raising of the retirement age to 65 from 60. This was part of a larger series of protests against labor reforms currently being proposed by President Nicholas Sarkozy.
The strike was only one of several union protests against Sarkozy’s labor reforms. Train conductors throughout France are planning to walk off the job beginning on Thursday over proposals to change their working hours, night shifts and break times. The unions see Sarkozy’s reforms as exploitative; the French government sees them as necessary in the face of increased unemployment and a struggling international economy.