France Steels for Raucous May Day

(AP) - Hundreds of thousands of European workers feeling the pinch of the economic crisis rallied at May Day protests today from Moscow to Berlin to Istanbul. Violence and clashes between police and angry protesters disrupted some events, including in Greece, Germany, and Turkey. But overall participation fell short of what many countries' unions had hoped for on May Day, a public holiday that celebrates the achievements of labor movements. More»

Russia, Malaysia, Taiwan, France ... the planet marches

(NEWSER) - May Day rallies are in effect in all corners of the globe, from Greece and Iraq to France and the Philippines—and, soon, stateside. What began as an international workers' holiday has morphed into an international day of protest, fueled in part by the Occupy Wall Street movement, with Asians clamoring for increased wages and Europeans blasting the austerity measures sweeping their continent. Thus far, all seems largely peaceful: Some 100,000 people took to the streets in Moscow, joined by a "happily chatting" Dmitry Medvedev and Vladimir Putin, reports the AP , while in Manila, some 8,000 red-shirted workers had their demand for a $3-a-day pay raise rejected by the president ... who was burned in effigy. More»

Mum on details, will pitch to EU leaders this month

(AP) - The leaders of Germany and France, the eurozone's two biggest economies, say they have reached agreement on strengthening Europe's shaky banking sector. German Chancellor Angela Merkel says she and French President Nicolas Sarkozy "are determined to do the necessary to ensure the recapitalization of Europe's banks." Merkel spoke after talks with Sarkozy at Berlin's chancellery today aimed at forging an agreement ahead of a summit of the European Union's 27 leaders later this month. More»

Workers have been camped at site for 10 days

(AP) - French riot police forced open a strategic fuel refinery today that had been a bastion of resistance to President Sarkozy's bid to raise the retirement age to 62, pushing striking workers aside with shields in a bid to end gasoline shortages. The operation came as the French Senate prepared to vote on a pension reform at the heart of the unions' anger, after the government short-circuited a protracted debate. More»

Lady Gaga cancels pair of concerts in furor over retirement age

(NEWSER) - Hundreds of workers barricaded Marseille’s main airport for three hours this morning, furious over today's Senate vote on raising France’s retirement age to 62. Meanwhile, protesters used vehicles to block highways and students blockaded a Paris high school. A quarter of French gas stations are dry amid the protests, and, crushingly, Lady Gaga has postponed two concerts in Paris "as there is no certainty the trucks can make it" to the shows, the AP reports. More»