French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Tuesday he would maintain the 35-hour working week in order to enable employees to add tax-deductible overtime to their salaries.
"There will always be a fixed working week and it will be 35 hours," he said in an interview on RTL radio.
Earlier this year Sarkozy called the 35-hour week, brought in by a Socialist government 10 years ago, an "economic catastrophe", but he appears reluctant to scrap it entirely for fear of angering unions and voters.
Many allies think he should be bolder.
Looking to force the issue, the head of the ruling UMP party said last week the law should be dismantled altogether, only to be disowned by Labour Minister Xavier Bertrand.
