Public sector workers join rail staff in protests across France against reforms

Police scuffled with protesters in Paris and fired teargas and water cannons in the western city of Nantes on Thursday during strikes across France in a challenge to President Emmanuel Macron’s economic reforms. Train conductors, teachers, and air traffic controllers walked out to join more than 150 mostly peaceful marches in cities and towns. This is the first time public sector workers have joined rail staff in protests since Macron came to office in May. Sixty percent of fast trains, 75 percent of inter-city trains, and 30 percent of flights to and from Paris airports were cancelled because of the strike, Reuters reported.