[Onthebarricades] WORKER PROTESTS AND STRIKES, Global North

[Andy]

*  AUSTRALIA:  Queensland firefighters protest pay and conditions
*  UK:  Cadbury's workers protest closure
*  IRELAND:  Sacked shop stewards go on hunger strike
*  US:  Detroit workers picket builder over failure to use local labour
*  US:  Pay cut at IBM leads to online protest
*  CANADA:  Forestry workers protest at legislature
*  US:  Cafeteria workers protest on Wall Street
*  IRELAND:  Meat packers target Marks and Spencer over international 
discrimination
*  AUSTRALIA:  Injured workers protest against coverage cuts
*  GERMANY:  Workers protest against closure of Nokia plant
*  FRANCE:  Civil servants strike
*  IRELAND:  Protest over rights of agency workers
*  NORTHERN IRELAND:  Bus drivers protest over lack of bus lanes, 
unreasonable travel times
*  FRANCE:  Workers protest possible takeover of SocGen

Publicly Archived at Global Resistance: 
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/globalresistance


http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/28/2175023.htm

Qld firies march to protest pay conditions
Posted Thu Feb 28, 2008 11:28am AEDT
Map: Brisbane 4000
An expected 500 Queensland firefighters will protest against a State 
Government wage offer with a march on Parliament in Brisbane today.
The Queensland Firefighters Union says an independent report, agreed to in 
enterprise bargaining negotiations, found the job value of firefighters has 
increased by nearly 50 per cent.
State secretary Mark Walker says the Government's offer is inadequate.
"We've invited both the Premier and the Emergency Services Minister Neil 
Roberts to address the gathering of firefighters to explain what they 
believe to be a fair offer as a result of the job evaluation and explain 
why," he said.
"So far their offer to the vast majority of firefighters has been for not 
one cent extra."
Mr Walker says the State Government needs to put an adequate pay offer on 
the table, or face more marches.
"It depends on whether the Government is preparted to be fair dinkum about a 
reasonable offer for Queensland firefighters," he said.
"It's the first, we hope it's the only [march] but that's up to the 
Government."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/somerset/7198128.stm

Protest against Cadbury closure

The factory will finally close in 2010 with production moving to Poland
Employees and union officials from Cadbury's chocolate factory at Keynsham 
have been out campaigning and urging people to boycott the firm's products.
The small demonstration was held outside Asda, Longwell Green, to get the 
protest message across.
Earlier this week it was confirmed plans to shut the factory and move 
production to Poland would go ahead.
A Cadbury's spokesman said it was disappointed a few individuals had called 
for the boycott.
'Sensitivity and understanding'
He added: "We appreciate feelings are running high after the announcement.
"We will treat all employees with sensitivity and understanding as we move 
to closure by 2010.
"But there will be no reduction in head count at the [Keynsham] factory 
during 2008."
Around a dozen protesters waved placards outside the store on Saturday.
Unite spokeswoman Lydia Hayes said it was important shoppers knew about the 
product boycott.
She said: "We are here to make sure people know about it and are asking 
shoppers not to buy Cadbury's chocolate."

http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/Sacked-shop-stewards-in-hunger.3954078.jp

Sacked shop stewards in hunger strike protest
TWO sacked airport shop stewards one a 72-year-old are planning to go on 
hunger strike from today.
Madan Gupta and Gordon McNeill, 38, and say they will continue their protest 
until their union Unite honours commitments they say were made to them last 
summer.

According to the men, this involved promises in relation to a 200,000 legal 
bill incurred after the pair became embroiled in a court battle with airport 
security company ICTS over their dismissal.

The hunger strikers plan to start their protest outside Transport House in 
Belfast. The men say a similar protest, combined with a rooftop 
demonstration at the same venue in September, was called off after the union
agreed their demands would be met within seven days.

However, with no change in their situation, Mr McNeill and Mr Gupta are 
resuming their protest this morning. Mr McNeill said: "Not one of the 
promises they made have been kept. We have been left to pay half of our 
200,000 legal bill, an impossible amount for low paid workers who found 
themselves out of work because we were betrayed by our union."

He went on: "We also want a public inquiry set up to examine the union's 
handling of this dispute from day one until now." Mr McNeill said that he 
and Mr Gupta were not entering into their protest lightly.

"Madan Gupta is 72 years old and suffers from diabetes," he said. "I am 38, 
but in poor health with a heart condition. We know the consequences of 
starting what this time is likely to be a protracted hunger strike but we 
are absolutely determined to face the consequences."

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080125/NEWS01/80125033/1009/NEWS07

Union workers protest hiring for Midtown project
But firm defends practice, commitment to Detroit
BY BOWDEYA TWEH . FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER . January 25, 2008
Union workers picketed for a second day in front of a Detroit apartment 
development because they believe a contractor hasn't hired city workers to 
complete skilled trades work.
Between 100 and 250 people were protesting in front of the Studio One 
development in Midtown, according to Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters 
Local 687 member Barabbas Shabazz.
Shabazz, 52, of Detroit said there is a policy that when construction 
contracts are made in the city, half of the skilled trades workers are 
supposed to be Detroit residents.

He said the city has defaulted on its responsibility to send representatives 
to construction sites to determine if the ratio of employees from the city 
and minorities is in order.

He said a city representative visited the site for fewer than 20 minutes 
Thursday and he is unsure of what will come of it.

Shabazz has not worked on this construction site.

"We are the ones that should have first placement on the jobs," Shabazz 
said. ".This affects everyone in Detroit who [has] a skilled trades and they 
don't hire us."

The Studio One project involves apartment units, a parking structure and 
retail space. Groundbreaking for the project began last March and 
construction began in following months. Wayne State University is a partner 
in the development and it will comprise the school's South University 
Village.

President and owner of Houseman Construction Co. Mike Houseman said Studio 
One is a private project except for the parking structure, which the 
university is building and financing. Studio One is leasing the land from 
WSU. Grand Rapids-based Houseman Construction is the general contractor for 
the project and Grand Rapids-based Prime Development is the lead developer.

Gerard Grant Phillips, head of the city's Human Rights Department, said the 
work the contractor has done on the site in getting Detroit residents on the 
job site is better than most. Phillips said 48% of the skilled workers on 
the Studio One site are Detroiters.

Phillips agreed with Houseman's assessment of the situation with the 
executive order and added there is also a requirement that 30 percent of the 
contractual dollars spent on a project using public funds has to go to 
Detroit's small businesses, Detroit-based businesses and businesses with 
Detroit headquarters.

The human rights office hired five compliance officers in July to help out 
with checking local construction sites. Phillips, who has served as chair of 
the department since January 2006, said the responsibilities on the 
compliance officers is large, but the job they are performing is important 
to sustaining the local economy.

"We are working diligently to make sure people are doing what they are 
supposed to do."

"I don't think they're protesting the city ordinance," Houseman said. "What 
they are protesting is the fact that Sciamanna Group [a suburban 
subcontractor] is not affiliated with the local union organization."

They are claiming that there are no local jobs or local people. They are 
very misinformed, on the contrary, we've committed to the city."
Former Mayor Coleman Young created Executive Order 22 in 1983. The order 
stated any construction project funded partly or wholly city, state or 
federal funds, "worker hours shall be performed by not less than 50% bona 
fide Detroit residents, not less than 25% minorities and at least 5% women." 
The order also said percentages would be applied on a craft-by-craft basis. 
Demolition projects were included under the order a year later.

Houseman said some elements of the executive order were rendered 
unenforceable through Proposal 2's passage in 2006. However, he said the 
company is working to hire at least 50% Detroit workers on the job site. 
Houseman said the city gave his company a letter recognizing it as a model 
for how the executive order is supposed to work.

Houseman said at the time of the project bidding, the union's participation 
was little to none. He said once the structures started to be erected, union 
members started coming to the job site. Houseman said the contracting 
companies have about 50% union-based workers and nonunion workers on the job 
site.

"We are working very hard to bring the work to the people of Detroit," 
Houseman said.

While picketing, Shabazz said between 15 and 20 Detroit police officers 
responded to a call made by the security team on the site. He said police 
officers threatened to arrest workers and it almost turned into a 
confrontation. Police limited the protesters to a certain perimeter in front 
of the development.

The Detroit Police Department saw it a little differently. Officers were 
dispatched to the scene around noon responding to a call that the picketers 
were blocking traffic. No problems or arrests resulted from visiting the 
scene.

The union office suite, 3800 Woodward Ave., is located less than half a mile 
away from the development.

Shabazz said he believes the issue will go under further debate in the union's 
next meeting in February.

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9062598&intsrc=news_ts_head

Wage cut prompts online protest at IBM
IBM lowers the pay for a large chunk of workers, who voice their opposition 
online
By Patrick Thibodeau

February 13, 2008 (Computerworld) Labor protests in the high-tech industry 
are rare, but IBM is in midst of one -- and it's unfolding entirely online. 
Instead of waving protest signs outside the company gates, affected workers 
are airing, in comments accompanying an online petition, disappointment, 
anger and bitterness with the company over a salary cut affecting 6% of 
IBM's U.S. workforce.
Since its announcement last month, more than 1,200 people have signed a 
petition sponsored by the Alliance at IBM, protesting pay cuts to 7,600 
technical support employees.. Whether all these signatures are from affected 
employees is not certain, but many of the comments seem authentic, and often 
heartfelt.
Comments such as "11 years on call ... Now less money than when in started 
in 97," "Previous loyal employee ... No more," and "This is not fair. I did 
not deserve this after all my hard work," are typical.
This change in how technical support workers are paid stems from a federal 
class action lawsuit filed by some employees in early 2006. In it, the 
workers complained they were not getting paid overtime after a 40-hour work 
week and they sought back pay. IBM settled the case that same year for $65 
million.
Last month, IBM told workers that it was reclassifying technical services 
and IT specialist jobs to nonexempt positions, making them eligible for 
overtime. But the company said it was also making a 15% base salary 
adjustment -- down.
Overtime pay, as a well as a transition payment to help where overtime 
doesn't meet the base pay adjustment, will offset this pay cut according to 
the company. The company characterized the change as a "pay remix" in a 
series of slides to managers that was subsequently leaked. But not all the 
employees will be able to offset the pay cut with overtime, according to 
information sent to managers; about one third of the affected employees are 
working on average less than 45 hours a week, the apparent salary parity 
threshold.
IBM spokesman Fred McNeese said that were IBM to pay overtime on top of 
salaries that were already competitive with the industry, the company would 
be uncompetitive. McNeese's point is listed as a key one in the slides sent 
to managers. "Adding overtime compensation to already competitive pay would 
quickly produce costs that exceed competitive levels -- an undesirable 
result for employees and our clients."
McNeese believes that overall compensation for employees after the change 
"should be the same."
Two affected employees, who spoke on the condition that their names not be 
used, disagreed that their pay would be similar. They argued that overtime 
was far from certain, required managerial approval, and opportunities for it 
could vary depending on business. Moreover, the cut in base pay affected 
those aspects of compensation calculated on base salary alone, such as 
insurance and disability. They also argued that it could affect personal 
areas, such as ability to qualify at a certain mortgage amount. One employee 
said that it rolls back his salary to what he earned in 2001.
The employees were also skeptical of the company's assertion that this 
change wasn't put in place to cut overall costs, and there are suspicions 
that wage pressure from offshore centers may be at work -- something IBM 
denies. "As far as I am concerned, they are going to save money," said one 
employee.
Lee Conrad, a former IBM employee who is now national coordinator of the 
Alliance at IBM in Endicott, NY, said he believes globalization may be a factor 
in the pay cut decision and suspects other companies will be looking at how 
IBM manages the pay cut. "If IBM is an indication of what's ahead, it's 
going to be a rough ride for American workers," he said.
The union, which is part of the Communications Workers of America, 
represents about 6,000 of IBM's total U.S. workforce of 125,000. It would 
need at least 60% membership to have bargaining power with the company, said 
Conrad.
Conrad said he been impressed by the outspoken reaction of IBM employees. 
"For IBMers to sign their name publicly to a petition -- that says a lot," 
he said.

http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=9ca7729c-c728-4280-8e3f-885ce882212f&k=82467

Forestry workers protest on steps of B.C. legislature
By John Bermingham, Vancouver Province
Published: Wednesday, February 13, 2008
VICTORIA -- About 100 forestry workers and their supporters joined NDP MLAs 
yesterday to protest against job cuts in B.C.'s biggest industry.
More than half the workers were bussed in from Campbell River, where the Elk 
Falls sawmill is to close May 9 with the loss of 257 jobs.
"We have a severe problem in this industry," said union local president 
Scott Doherty, standing on the steps of the Legislature. "Our Liberal 
government is doing nothing."

NDP forestry critic Bob Simpson said that since logging was no longer tied 
to milling in 2003, tens of thousands of forestry jobs have been lost.
The big forestry companies promised at the time to create value-added jobs 
and revitalize coastal forestry, he said. But instead, raw log exports to 
the U.S. have increased, B.C. sawmills are closing, and most of the 
value-added work is gone, he said.
"They did not deliver on any of the promises they made," Simpson said of 
Interfor, TimberWest and Weyherhauser. "That is the Premier's fault."
In Tuesday's Throne Speech, the B.C. government promised to set up a Working 
Roundtable on Forestry, and help older workers retire earlier and re-train 
forest workers.

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/05/cafeteria-workers-protest-on-wall-street/?hp

March 5, 2008,  6:27 pm
Cafeteria Workers Protest on Wall Street
By Sewell Chan
Workers for Aramark, a giant food-services company, protested om Wednesday 
afternoon outside the offices of several Wall Street financial companies 
where union members serve in the cafeterias. (Photo: Josh Haner/The New York 
Times)
Hundreds of cafeteria and other food-service workers rallied in Lower 
Manhattan on Wednesday afternoon for higher wages and improved benefits as 
part of an ongoing battle between the Aramark Corporation and the union 
Unite Here, which represents about 20,000 Aramark employees, including about 
4,000 in the New York region.
The workers rallied outside the headquarters of Bank of New York Mellon at 
One Wall Street before traveling to the Goldman Sachs headquarters 
headquarters at 85 Broad Street and then returning. Some chanted slogans 
like, "Who's in the kitchen? We don't know. Aramark has got to go."
Unite Here has engaged in several skirmishes with Aramark over the last 
several months, but the outcome of the battles has not been decisive. From 
Nov. 12 to Feb. 12, 91 Aramark workers assigned to the cafeterias at the New 
York Life Insurance Company and an office tower at 55 Water Street were on 
strike over terms for a new contract. On Tuesday, 34 workers assigned to two 
Bank of New York Mellon cafeterias (One Wall Street and 101 Barclay Street) 
began a strike, again over contract talks. Kevin Heine, a spokesman for Bank 
of New York Mellon, declined to comment on the strike against Aramark.
"I'm not saying, Shame on you for making $50 million," said Jose Maldanado, 
secretary-treasurer at Local 100 of Unite Here, to loud cheers by a crowd of 
more than 300 people, many of them waving purple and yellow flags. "I'm 
saying, Shame on you for not sharing that $50 million with your employees."
The two sides have traded accusations. In a phone interview, the union's 
national president, Bruce S. Raynor, singled out Goldman Sachs, one of Wall 
Street's most prosperous firms, which is not only a client of Aramark but a 
part-owner. GS Capital Partners, a private-equity arm of the firm, helped 
take Aramark private in a deal that was completed in January 2007.
"There is no greater example of income inequality in American society than 
the Goldman Sachs cafeteria," Mr. Raynor said, adding that average employee 
compensation at Goldman Sachs was $660,000 last year, while employees in the 
company cafeteria typically are paid about $21,000 a year. "Aramark is in 
the middle of this equation, and as an owner and as a client Goldman Sachs 
needs to get Aramark to do the right thing." Two spokespeople for Goldman 
did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Kristine Grow, a spokeswoman for Aramark, said the company "does pay 
competitive wages and benefits both for its industry and in the geographies 
in which it operates." She added, "The vast majority of our employees do 
have access to health care options - some as inexpensive as $10 a week." 
About 30 percent of the company's 165,000 hourly workers nationwide are 
union members, she said.
Ms. Grow attributed the tensions with the union to the union's demand for 
card checks, in which workers form unions by signing cards, instead of 
formal unionization elections supervised by the National Labor Relations 
Board. Unions generally prefer card checks, which they consider easier to 
win than elections.
Ms. Grow asserted the union had missed a deadline requiring it to notify 
Aramark at least 60 days before the latest contract expired, at the end of 
February, that it wished to renegotiate the terms of the contract. As a 
result, she said, the contract was automatically renewed for a year.
Matt Furshong, a researcher for Local 100, conceded that the union had 
missed the deadline, but he called it a technicality and said the union 
planned to contest the extension of the contract.
As the protest went on, several workers at the affected companies did not 
seem particularly concerned. Mark DeWitt, 56, a Bank of New York employee 
who lives in Pittsburgh, was waiting for a ride to an airport as the 
protesters chanted. "They can demonstrate," he said. "They can do whatever 
they want."

http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5ghQAX50oSk32cgdnTetw8EICXRsA

Union in protest over meat workers
Mar 5, 2008
Protesters are staging a demonstration outside Marks & Spencer's Irish 
flagship store over alleged discrimination of workers in the international 
meat industry.
Trade union Unite claims suppliers to the food and clothes giant and other 
major retailers exploit some employees. It alleges that meat suppliers 
operate a permanent two-tier workforce which sparks conflict between migrant 
and local workers, leading to community disharmony.
Jimmy Kelly, Unite regional secretary, said the union will stage a protest 
outside Marks & Spencer's Grafton Street shop in Dublin to highlight the 
plight of workers. "M&S and the other retailers must face up to their 
responsibilities and start putting workers, communities and consumers 
first," he said. "They dictate the price of the contracts, and they cannot 
wash their hands of responsibility. M&S must show respect for workers in its 
supply chain and insist that the meat supply industry ends exploitation and 
discrimination."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/08/2184133.htm

Injured workers protest against WorkCover cuts
Posted Sat Mar 8, 2008 2:15pm AEDT
Map: Adelaide 5000
A group of injured workers has confronted the South Australian Government's 
adviser on cutting WorkCover payments at a community meeting in Adelaide 
this morning.
Independent consultant Alan Clayton made recommendations to cut injury 
payouts to reduce the Government's unfunded WorkCover liability of more than 
$800 million.
Mr Clayton faced about 50 workers at the Enfield community centre this 
morning to defend the changes.
"My role was to produce a report according to the terms of reference," he 
said.
Other speakers included the independent MP Kris Hanna, who has criticised 
the Government's proposal.
"These people are emotional because most of the injured workers who are here 
today are going to be dumped onto the dole," he said.
The workers are vowing to rally outside State Parliament when the WorkCover 
bill is debated in April.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-01/23/content_7475333.htm

Germans protest against Nokia plant closure

    BERLIN, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of German workers took to the 
streets in protest against the closure of a Nokia cell phone assembly plant, 
local reports said Tuesday.
    Some 20,000 demonstrators attended the protest called by Germany's trade 
union IG Metall in the western city of Bochum in the Ruhr industrial area, 
German radio Deutsche Welle reported.
    Nokia announced last week that it planned to close its plant in Bochum 
and move most of the operation to Cluj, Romania, where the production cost 
is much lower. Over 2,000 German employees could therefore lose their jobs.
    IG Metall said Tuesday that its talks with the Finnish mobile-phone 
manufacturer had been fruitless. It pledged to fight on to keep the German 
plant open.
    Nokia's decision has ignited anti-Nokia anger in the country as some 
politicians called in public for boycott against the firm's cell phones.

http://www.webinfrance.com/civil-servants-strike-in-france-125.html

Civil servants strike in France - A labor ritual, says French authorities
January 25, 2008
Civil servants held demonstrations all over France on Thursday protesting 
job cuts and demanding higher salaries for al French government workers. The 
government of France characterized the marches as simply another "labor 
union ritual." Strikes and protest marches in France have become a 
commonplace and regular occurrence.
Seven out of the eight public servants' unions in France, representing 
around 5 million workers, called on its workers to strike, with teachers, 
hospital workers, firefighters and postal workers answering the call.
According to France's CGT labor union, about 400,000 people took to the 
streets all across France. Marchers carrying banners and bullhorns choked 
streets in Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Marseille.
In Paris, the unions claimed up to 40,000 people had turned out to march, 
while police low-balled the numbers at 17,000.
The day follows a similar strike on November 20 and a separate wave of 
stoppages over pensions by transport and energy workers across France.
Civil Servants Minister Eric Woerth was quoted as saying, "This is a 
maneuver that amounts to a labor union ritual," dismissing the seriousness 
and validity of the marchers' concerns. He added that he would have 
preferred a dynamic of "dialogue, not confrontation." However, Woerth had 
recently announced plans to cut 22,900 civil service jobs this year, one of 
the issues that had workers up in arms.
On the subject of the across-the-board pay raises civil servants in France 
are demanding, union leader Francois Chereque called for open salary talks 
with the government. He also criticized President of France Nicolas Sarkozy, 
saying he has failed to augment French purchasing power, a major issue in 
France.
The strike raises pressure on Sarkozy, who is facing a dip in approval 
ratings in France, festering consternation over scandals in his private life 
and rising doubt about his election promises to raise the standard of living 
for workers.
Strikes in France are regarded by many both in the public and government as 
a needless nuisance, with complaints that unions in France use strikes as a 
first resort rather than a last. However, according to an opinion poll in 
Wednesday's Les Echos business daily, 57 % of the public said the day of 
strikes was justified.
This particular walkout was a response to the unions' dissatisfaction with 
the result of December negotiations, when the government of France rejected 
demands for sweeping salary increases. While transport workers have recently 
struck three times, they did not join Thursday's strike

http://www.northallertontimes.co.uk/latest-irish-news/Protest-over-agency-worker-rights.3790294.jp

Published Date: 19 February 2008
Source: Press Association
Location: The Press Association Newsdesk

Protest over agency worker rights
Trade union activists are holding a protest outside the Dail demanding 
legislation to protect agency workers.
The protest, organised by Siptu, will coincide with a Dail debate on the 
rights of agency workers, including vulnerable migrant workers.

The Labour Party and Sinn Fein have jointly tabled a private members motion 
expressing concern over workers they say are subjected to poor pay and 
conditions. The motion will be debated during private members time on 
Tuesday and Wednesday evenings.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/7234948.stm

Bus drivers in protest over lanes

Metro drivers have staged a protest in Belfast
Bus drivers have taken to the streets of Belfast in protest over dedicated 
bus lanes.
The union, Unite, said 68% of drivers suffered severe to moderate stress due 
to pressure to meet unrealistic running times during peak times.
It has urged a ballot on industrial action over the difficulties of 
providing a "first class transport system with uninterrupted bus lanes".
Translink said there was a plan to install more bus corriders.
On Friday, Unite launched a campaign to urge the government to take action.
Sean Smyth of Unite said: "Translink are losing £3m a year on fuel. There's 
at least another £2m to £3m probably lost on sickness caused by insufficient 
running times.
"That's about £6m. How much is the Northern Ireland economy losing by people 
arriving at work late?"

Last week, the union called on Minister Conor Murphy to meet promises made 
to introduce dedicated bus lanes into the city centre.
It questioned how long the Rapid Transport System outlined by the Department 
for Regional Development would take to come into effect.
On Friday, Metro Bus Drivers chairman Michael Doran said: "The government 
has failed to provide the bus priorities promised and that's what we're 
asking for."
Ciaran Rogan of Translink agreed driving buses was a difficult job, 
particularly during congested times but pointed out that some of the bus 
lanes worked very well.
"With our colleagues in road service we have a programme to put in a lot 
more bus priorities measures and quality bus corridors.
"We are moving as fast we we can to do that. But the drivers are quite right 
to highlight that congestion is an issue and it's getting worse week by 
week.
"The travelling public are losing out."

http://www.news.com.au/business/story/0,23636,23142495-31037,00.html

Employees protest SocGen takeover
>From correspondents in Paris
February 01, 2008 05:40am
Article from: Agence France-Presse
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ABOUT 4000 employees of crisis-hit French bank Societe Generale demonstrated 
today in front of the company's headquarters in Paris to protest a possible 
takeover, the bank said.
Another minor demonstration involving 300 employees took place in front of 
another Societe Generale office in the Paris area.
BNP Paribas, France's biggest bank, suggested overnight that it might be 
interested in a takeover of Societe Generale, which is seen as a target 
after a rogue trader scandal.