Civil servants must do more work

CIVIL servants on the French Riviera have been told they will have to work longer from next year, in a move aimed at saving €20million in overtime payments and lieu days.

The president of the Alpes-Maritimes departmental council, Eric Ciotti, said the 35-hour working week had been "a calamity for our country" - with the council voting overwhelmingly to increase the working time for 4,500 staff.

Workers will have their holiday entitlement cut by three days and the RTT time-savings scheme that allows them to build up lieu days for working overtime will be halved to 11 days a year.

"It's no small effort," Ciotti said. "I'm aware of that, but it has to be done. We need to make savings. As we have shed some staff, we need those remaining to be more present."

France Info says the Alpes-Maritimes has become the first local authority in France to impose the change, which comes after a recent report by the Cour des Comptes which was critical of the effect the 35-hour week is having on public bodies. Staff will still benefit from entitlements that are better than the legal minimum.

The CGT trade union has urged its members to work to rule, while the Socialist party describes the change as "authoritarian" and "demotivating".