Rotting piles of garbage -- approximately 9,000 tonnes of it -- are becoming a health hazard in the Mediterranean city of Marseille, which has been hit hard on land and at sea. Striking dockers at France's largest port are intermittently blocking ships trying to unload fuel there.

Among the industries on strike are 12 refineries in France which have been shut down for nearly two weeks. Although the government has forced some of them to make stocked fuel available, at least one in four gas stations in France has run dry.

French president Nicolas Sarkozy was steadfast amid the growing pressure, determined to reform the retirement system to ensure funds for future generations as life expectancy increases and the nation's debt soars.

"We must be aware that in a world without borders we can't have a French exception ... that exists nowhere else," said lawmaker Pierre Mehaignerie, of Sarkozy's UMP party.

Strikers were clearly counting on derailing the measure before it is signed into law after this week's final voting.                        Add Comments>>