New public sector strike planned

Civil servants are set to strike for the second time next month in protest at the government's planned public sector reforms.

Seven unions - CFE-CGC, CFTC, CGT, FA-FP, FO, FSU and Solidaires - have called on members to walk out on May 22, and have condemned "a lack of dialogue" with the government over their concerns.

The first protests economic changes announced by President Emmanuel Macron, on March 22, saw thousands take to the streets, disrupting public transport, schools and other public services.

An estimated 47,800 demonstrators marched to the Place de la Bastille in Paris, including 13,100 railway workers, according to an independent count carried out by the Occurrence data group.

Among a series of reforms to the public sector, the government plans to cut 120,000 jobs by the end of President Emmanuel Macron's current five-year term.