54 percent for, 55 percent against – DUH

Oh good. The French are back to their usual habits, pursing their favourite pastime. Striking.

Thursday promises to be a real joy for anyone trying to struggle into work, or anywhere else for that matter, as there will be a virtual shutdown of the country’s transportation system – yet again.

Trains, buses, the metro and ‘planes will all be providing less than the “minimum service” with the busiest places most likely to be the nation’s roads as people go nowhere not very fast.

It’s the first real test of government’s attempts to reform pensions for some public sector workers’ “special privileges”, but opinion seems to be divided as to whether there’s really public support for the day of inaction.

Of course it all depends which newspaper you read, but it’s more than slightly curious that two surveys carried out at the same time by different market research companies come out with results that are quite literally, poles apart.

And naturally nothing should be read into the fact that the one claiming a “resounding majority” against tomorrow’s strike appears in the centre-right daily Le Figaro. Or that the Communist daily L’Humanité tells us that in fact public opinion is behind the action by more or less the same margin.

Whatever the level of support everyone is going to have to face the same chaos and probably the best way to cope will be to stay at home.

Although politicians across the spectrum broadly agree that there’s a need for an overhaul of the pension system, union leaders want workers to hold on to “special privileges”, which allow some state employees to retire at 50 or 55 – on full pension – even though the official retirement age is 60

The privileges are something of a sacred cow to the unions here in France. Many date back to the early part of the last century as part of labour agreements to compensate for (what were then undeniably) dangerous working conditions or protect workers in sectors considered vital to the “National Interest”.

These include train drivers, utility workers in the energy giants EDF and even theatre staff at the Comédie Française! They’ll all be on strike tomorrow.

And that’s perhaps the most important factor. The last attempt to reform the “special privileges” back in 1995 brought the country to a three-week standstill and forced the government to abandon its policy.

This time around the unions have managed to organise just a one-day strike in spite of having almost a month to prepare - although they are balloting members on possible further action.

Meanwhile the president, Nicolas Sarkozy is apparently unfazed and maintains that he was elected on a reform platform. And he even has tentative support from what’s left of the political opposition, which has so far managed to muster up the mind-boggling response that it’s not exactly saying “no” to the need for change, but hasn’t exactly thrown it’s collective weight behind the strike either.

With such clarity it’s perhaps not surprising that the polls have decided that public opinion is both for and against but more importantly decidedly DUH.