Most French rail workers returned to work on Thursday after lawmakers voted to approve the broad outlines of a reform plan that had triggered one of France’s longest rail strikes in years, reports FRANCE 24.
Deputies in the National Assembly approved late on Wednesday a new structure for France’s ageing railway system. State-owned railways company SNCF and track owner RFF will be brought into the same holding company while maintaining separate operations.
The reform, designed to prepare the system for European Union moves to liberalise Europe’s transport routes, has worried railway unions who fear their workers’ generous benefits will be eroded as more competition comes to the sector. Unionists have also raised concerns about safety maintenance under any changes.
To allay those concerns, deputies voted for amendments that maintain the “inseparable and integral character” of the new entities, and the establishment of a works council.
Support for the strike among rail workers, which has run for nine days, waned on Thursday with SNCF reporting that only 10.5 percent of its 150,000 workers were participating.
A small core of workers voted to pursue the strike, which has forced hundreds of cancellations and huge delays across France. A final parliamentary vote on the reform is due on June 24.
On Thursday, seven out of 10 trains were expected to run, in what SNCF called “ongoing improvement” of service.
“It’s time to get back to work,” the head of SNCF, Guillaume Pepy, told daily Le Parisien. “We’ve lost 153 million euros ... a third of our last year’s results. That’s huge.”
Read more of this report from FRANCE 24.