Talks to begin over French strike

Rail workers fear the loss of special pensions

French transport unions, management and the government are due to hold talks as strikes over plans to reform pensions enter an eighth day.

Hopes have been raised that a settlement may be reached to end the industrial action that has crippled France's transportation network.

Hundreds of thousands of public servants added their weight to the strikes on Tuesday over job loss fears.

But President Nicolas Sarkozy has vowed to continue his controversial reforms.

'No budging'

Labour Minister Xavier Bertrand on Tuesday expressed hopes that the talks with transport unions would help end their open-ended strike.

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"I think the conditions are there for everyone to get out of it honourably," he was quoted as saying by the AFP news agency.

President Sarkozy also urged the protesters to go back to work now that negotiations were beginning.

"Everyone must ask whether it is right to continue a strike which has already cost users - and strikers - so dear.

"I think of those millions of French people who after a day of work have no bus, metro or train to take them home and who are tired of being used as hostages."

The government has said there could be incentives of salary rises and a top-up scheme for pensions.

But it has stressed that there will be no budging on the core issue of eliminating special pensions which allow 500,000 transport and utility workers to retire early.

Didier Le Rester of France's General Labour Confederation has predicted that the negotiations could last up to a month.

Commuter havoc

The state-owned national rail operator, SNCF, estimated there would be slightly improved rail services on Wednesday as the number of strikers steadily declined.

'SPECIAL' PENSIONS SYSTEM Benefits 1.6m workers, including 1.1m retirees Applies in 16 sectors, of which rail and utilities employees make up 360,000 people Account for 6% of total state pension payments Shortfall costs state 5bn euros (£3.5bn; $6.9bn) a year Some workers can retire on full pensions aged 50 Awarded to Paris Opera House workers in 1698 by Louis XIV Can street protests succeed? Solidarity amid French crisis

The company said around 400 of the 700 high-speed TGV trains would be running.

Paris transport operator RATP said about 25% of its metro trains would be running.

The week of strikes has caused havoc for millions of commuters across France.

Businesses have started complaining that the strikes are hurting their operations.

Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said the dispute was costing France up to 400m euros (£290m) a day.

'Overdue' reforms

Hundreds of thousands of civil servants joined striking transport and energy workers on Tuesday over what they say is an erosion in their earnings and proposals to slim France's large public sector.

Teachers, postal workers, air traffic controllers and hospital staff stayed off the job in protest, as students continued to demonstrate over university funding plans.

The 24-hour action was said to be the largest protest against Mr Sarkozy's reforms since he took power in May.

He said the reforms were overdue and that they were necessary "to confront the challenges set by the world".

"We will not surrender and we will not retreat," Mr Sarkozy said.

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