After being pelted with eggs by workers blockading Continental’s tyre factory on the banks of the river Oise, managers have been spotted sneaking in the back entrance by boat.

Nicolas Sarkozy talks to a French factory worker but the president is increasingly seen as out of touch as social tensions rise in the recession

“People are distraught,” says Christian Lahargue, a Conti worker facing redundancy. “We’ll go all the way to keep this factory open.”