THREAT FOR FRANCE

Chronicle (Levin), 14 June 1947, Page 5

THREAT FOR FRANCE

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Slabilisaliw Dam Has

By Telegrgyb

-Copyright

Eeceived Friday, 10.50 p.ni. FAEiy^ dune 13. . AYhild the transcontin,eBtai expifes^es roifed out of Paris agaiu yesterday at the end oi Fr-anceV raiiway strike other big" labour anipns were preparing to de^najid coueessio.ns froui Ea^odier ' Mirular to those whieh -caused the ' .iationwide transport holdup. Observers fear a new strike wave worse than anything tliat has. yel happ.ene-d in the timibled postwar years. . - Several thousand -State empioyees — street cleaners, firemen and' administrative personnel— will hold a one-.day strike today. The postal and telephone empioyees threaten a national strike in three weeks' time if their wa.«v demands are not satished. All the .reeent strikes gained inereased pay for the4 strikers. One M.E.P. deputy eommented that the w'age stabili'sation progr-amme no longer existed. "The dam has broken. "

The Communist dominated Com federation of Labour is ' waiti 114, unti] July 1 to see whether prices will f all before it takes any official aetion 011 the Government 's wage and prices policy. M. Eamad er has mean while postponed hn promised re-examination of wages from July 1 to December and has aecused the Communists of delib eratehy fomenting unrest to try to get baek in the Government. The £20,000,000 whieh is needed to meet the wage increase in the Urench railwavs will absQrb tbe economies introdueed in the Budget as Well as the cuts in eivii expenditure whieh tbe Finance Minister ordered two months M. Ramadier is determined ; lceep the estimated expenditure within the limits of the estimated revenue. The Finance Minister is ])reparing further economy measures whieh will be submitied to Parliament soon. Tbe eoadminers will shortly ask i'or increases. P»otb tlie railwayt and coalmiues have been nationalised and are workingmt a loss sothat every peiiny of the increased wages is an additional burdeu on the Treasury. The municipal employees, includint •treet cleaners, hospital workers ang indertakers, coinmenced a 24-hou "warning" strike whieh the Federu . tion of Public Employees called to drav the Government 's attention ' to it"laims for wage increases. The under ground and bus aervices are not aRect ed. The strike was declared on 1 national basis but the publie eiuployee:in Calais and Angers continued to work"