General Confederation of Labour

Argentine trains ground to a halt and hospitals were left running on fumes this week as austerity measures sparked mass walkouts - even as the country boasted its first budget surplus in 12 years.

Argentine judges on Wednesday suspended labor law changes that form part of a mega-decree of sweeping economic reforms and deregulation announced by the country's libertarian new president, Javier Milei.

Argentina's main labor union on Thursday called for a general strike over President Javier Milei's reforms aimed at liberalizing the country's economy.

The Eiffel Tower, one of the world's top tourist attractions, was closed on Dec. 27 after staff went on strike, the landmark's operator said.

The one-day stoppage on the 100th anniversary of the death of engineer Gustave Eiffel, who built the tower, was to protest against "the current way it is managed," the hard-left CGT union said in a statement.

As the unions reported, a million people are expected on the streets in French cities.
Workers staged protest marches across France today, May 1, International Labor Day, unhappy that President Emmanuel Macron raised the retirement age and police fired tear gas in Paris and Nantes in the west of the country.

Clashes broke out in Paris next to a Left Bank pub favored by French President Emmanuel Macron, Reuters reported.
The awning of the Caf de la Rotonde was briefly set on fire.

France's Senate voted early yesterday to approve a deeply unpopular reform to the country's pension system, hours after demonstrators took to the streets to oppose the cornerstone policy of President Emmanuel Macron's second term in office.

Unions have organized strikes across the country against President Emmanuel Macron's intention to implement pension reform.
There were also reports of students blocking schools, while BFM TV showed footage of workers leaving cars on the side of the road near Amiens in northern France, while others blocked access to an industrial area, Reuters reports.

France's prime minister has ruled out backtracking on a plan to raise the retirement age as unions prepared for another day of mass protests and strikes against the contested reform.

An increase in the minimum retirement age to 64 from the current 62 is part of a flagship reform package pushed by President Emmanuel Macron to ensure the future financing of France's pensions system.

The letter is supported by the Cyprus Writers Union and the French Associations SNJ and SNJ-CGT