French Unions On Strike And Divided

A nationwide public employees’ strike in France hobbled air and rail service and left schools and post offices operating at half staff on Thursday, but it widened splits in unions about how firmly to resist spending cuts and hiring freezes that the French government says are necessary to get ready for a common European currency in 1999.

Militant demonstrators at a Paris rally booed and spat on a moderate union leader who supports parts of a government plan to eliminate billions of dollars of deficits in the French social-security system, which also administers health insurance.