Bipartisan Open Thread

CREPY-EN-VALOIS, France – Workers at a French car accessories plant north of Paris threatened Friday to blow up their factory unless they were given better layoff compensation.

Employees at the Sodimatex plant placed petrol bombs near a large gas tank and were threatening to set them on fire.

“The plant is going to go up in smoke, if that’s what they want,” said one worker.

Managers sat down with union leaders and labour mediators at the town hall in Crepy-en-Valois in a bid to defuse tensions at the plant, where 92 jobs will be shed.

“The workers have high expectations about this meeting. There has to be a concrete result or else anything could happen. They are very determined,” said Eric Lemoine, a union activist.