French gov't delays presentation of labor reform amid mounting criticism

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Monday announced the presentation of a draft bill to reform the labor code, initially scheduled for March 9, would be postponed for two more weeks.

Valls said the text would be presented at a cabinet meeting on March 24 "to remove all the misunderstanding" and "to correct what needs to be," Valls was quoted as saying by local media during a visit to France's farm fair.

"We have always been open to discussion. It is through discussion, dialogue that we can make things happen," he said.

The text would be finally approved by lawmakers in May, the French premier added.

Under fire to lower joblessness rate currently at 10.2 percent, French government wanted to reform labor code by opening to negotiation working hours, rest time holiday and overtime pay while maintaining the 35-hour working week.

However, the socialist fresh device to improve labor market flexibility failed to convince critics even from the ruling camp which fear loosing labor rule would further fuel social strains without a concrete impact on jobless claims.

"We must keep the pressure... It's the general philosophy of the text that is in question. We demand the suspension (of the bill), not a postponement," Jean-Claude Mailly, the head of Force Ouvriere, a major union federation in France, told news channel BFMTV. Endit