Business News
Anti-austerity protests set to begin across France
Dec 13, 2011, 8:19 GMT
Paris - France was bracing for a day of nationwide protests Tuesday over the government's austerity plans.
Five major trade unions have called for a day of mobilization to protest the government's 17-billion-euro (22.4-billion-dollar) tax hikes and spending cuts plan.
Some 185 demonstrations are planned throughout the country.
Bernard Thibault, secretary general of the CGT, told France 2 television that the trade unions wanted to send a message to the government that 'enough is enough.'
But union leaders appeared to be preparing for a lukewarm response from workers, with the last such protests, on October 11, failing to mobilize large numbers.
Thibault said he expected the participation on Tuesday to be also 'middling.'
'It probably won't meet our expectations,' he said, blaming the 'intransigence of the government,' which he claimed had taught workers that, even if they demonstrated, the government would still 'stick to the same course.'
President Nicolas Sarkozy's government presented two austerity plans between August and September aimed at slashing the budget deficit and preserving France's top AAA credit rating.
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