Workers at a bankrupt French car parts factory have decided that the best way to get some redundancy cash is to threaten to blow up the factory.

According to Autocar, the 366 belligerent ex-employees of New Fabris in Chatellerault have seized the premises and are ready and willing to detonate stockpiled gas bottles unless Renault and PSA Peugeot Citroën cough 30k for each worker - to match the amount the two car makers apparently paid to 200 former employees of another defunct supplier.

Guy Eyermann, CGT union official and secretary of the company works council, insisted: "The gas bottles are in the factory. Everything has been planned for it to blow up.

"We are not going to let PSA and Renault wait until August or September to recover the spare parts and machines still in the factory. If we get nothing, they get nothing at all."

Aficionados of revolting French workers will recall that the "communist-leaning" CGT union had a hand in the kidnapping of local Sony chief exec who'd popped into the company's video tape plant in Pontonx-sur-l'Adour to bid adieu to the 300 dismissed staff. ®

Related stories

• HP packing workers seal bosses in conference room (17 April 2009)
• Brief Workers take Caterpillar Inc managers hostage (31 March 2009)
• Revolting French workers bite 3M's balles (26 March 2009)
• French 3M workers barricade boss in office (25 March 2009)
• Updated Sacked French Sony workers hold chief exec hostage (13 March 2009)