Workers for the French ferry company SeaFrance blocked access to the Channel tunnel to Britain for several hours Thursday to protest a planned increase in the number of foreigners allowed to work on French commercial vessels. Around 400 of the employees set fire to tyres on a motorway leading to the entry of the tunnel close to the port city of Calais, producing a cloud of thick smoke.
Firemen arrived to put out the blazing obstacles, while motorists heading to the tunnel were diverted onto other roads to reach the terminal, where their vehicles are loaded onto trains.
The workers were demanding that French authorities modify a bill on the number of foreigners working on ferries and other vessels to ensure that at least 35 percent of employees are French.
Police said that while the road protest ended late Thursday, the workers continue to halt access to the ferry terminal in Calais.