France braced for a day of major disruption on Tuesday after unions called a nationwide transport strike as they remain at an impasse with the government over strikes at oil depots that have sparked fuel shortages.

The move comes after workers at several refineries and depots owned by energy giant TotalEnergies voted to extend their strike action.

Their industrial action has seriously disrupted fuel distribution across the country, particularly in northern and central France and the Paris region.

Motorists have been scrambling to fill up as the fuel strike, which has been going on for almost three weeks, has shut down supplies at just over 30 per cent of France’s petrol stations and has had a domino effect on all sectors of the economy.

President Emmanuel Macron’s government used requisition powers to force some strikers to open fuel depots, a move that enraged unions but has so far been upheld in court.

“We will continue to do everything we can,” Macron said after meeting ministers on Monday, adding that he wanted the crisis “to be resolved as soon as possible.”

Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire previously said it was necessary to use requisition powers to reopen refineries and depots.

“The time for negotiations is over,” Le Maire told broadcaster BFMTV.

“There was a negotiation, there was an agreement,” he added, referring to the agreement struck last week between TotalEnergies and two majority unions, but opposed by far-left union CGT.

CGT boss Philippe Martinez suggested on Monday that the government should “sit down around the table” with the unions to discuss an increase in France’s minimum wage.

“Requisitions are unacceptable and never the right solution,” added Frederic Souillot, general secretary of the FO union, which is also taking part in the strike day, the unions’ biggest challenge for Macron since he won a new term as president in May.

The left-wing CGT and FO on Tuesday called for a nationwide strike for higher wages and against the state confiscation of oil assets, threatening to paralyze public transport in particular.

Unions in other industries and the public sector have also announced action to protest the dual impact of rising energy prices and headline inflation on the cost of living.

Rail operator SNCF will experience “serious disruption” as half of its train services are canceled, Transport Secretary Clement Beaune said.

Suburban transport in the Paris region, as well as bus services, will also be affected, operator RATP said, but the inner-city metro system should be largely unaffected.

Beyond transport workers, unions are hoping to hire staff in sectors such as the food industry and healthcare, CGT boss Martinez told France Inter radio.

Her action will usher in what is likely to be a tense autumn and winter as Macron also seeks to implement his flagship domestic policy of raising France’s retirement age.

But economic pressures, caused in part by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, coupled with Macron’s party’s failure to secure an overall majority in June’s general election, only adds to the magnitude of the task.

The latest call for a strike comes after tens of thousands of protesters demonstrated in Paris on Sunday to express their frustration at the rising cost of living.

The demonstration was called by the left-wing political opposition and led by France Unbowed (LFI) party leader Jean-Luc Melenchon.

Some protesters wore fluorescent yellow vests, the symbol of the often violent 2018 anti-government protests that rocked Macron’s pro-business government.

Organizers claimed 140,000 people took part in Sunday’s march, but police said it was 30,000.