The leader of France's largest union faces pressure to resign after news reports detailing his lucrative perks caused a crisis in what is one of the main opponents of government plans for economic reforms, reports Reuters.
The CGT's troubles could make it easier for President François Hollande to push through economic and labour policies that euro zone partners want in return for giving Paris more time to reduce its public deficit.
Senior CGT sources told Reuters the union's governing council could ask Thierry Lepaon to resign as leader as early as next Tuesday after reports revealed expensive perks linked to his appointment in March 2013. He has denied any wrongdoing.
"There are people who want him to leave," said one regional CGT leader.
"Should we wait until the next congress (in February) or saw off the branch right away? If the leaks keep piling up, we should definitely saw off the branch right away," he said. A second senior CGT source confirmed that senior union officials were considering asking Lepaon to step down.
Last month satirical weekly Le Canard Enchaîné reported that the union had paid 130,000 euros (102,027.34 pounds) to renovate an apartment rented for Lepaon just outside Paris.
Since then, media have reported that tens of thousands of euros were spent renovating Lepaon's office and that he received over 100,000 euros of severance pay for leaving a local CGT chapter when he became national leader.
Lepaon has defended the apartment costs as a "collective error" by the union. He did not reply to Reuters calls over the latest allegations but L'Express magazine quoted him as saying the severance benefit he received was normal.