PARIS - PRESIDENT Nicolas Sarkozy faced a new test of his resolve to streamline France's public sector as hundreds of thousands of teachers and civil servants went on strike on Thursday to protest job cuts.

In cities across France, public sector workers marched in the streets in what unions said was a dress rehearsal for broader strike action planned for next Thursday.

'This is a major day of protest,' said Mr Francois Chereque, leader of the CFDT union. 'The only vision that the government has for the public service is an accountant's vision.'

Some 60 per cent of France's 740,000 teachers walked off the job, according to the unions, but the government put the figure lower at 39 per cent in high schools and 46 per cent in the primary sector.

The head of the CGT union for state employees, Jean-Marc Cannon, called on Mr Sarkozy's right-wing government to 'consider the full measure of what is going on.'

The strike action was to protest the government's plan to cut 22,900 civil servant jobs including 11,200 in education this September, and another 35,000 next year, mostly by not replacing retiring employees.

Standing firm, Mr Sarkozy announced that he had asked that a new bill be drafted to ensure that parents can still send their children to school during work stoppages, a measure the unions have denounced as undermining the right to strike.

'I have asked the government to introduce before this summer a bill that will ensure that children can still go to school and that parents can exercise their legitimate right to go to work,' he said.

Mr Sarkozy campaigned for the presidency last year on a plan to trim down the civil service as part of a broader plan to overhaul the state and bring down public spending.

In Paris, more than 50,000 civil servants, teachers, students and parents led by senior union leaders marched behind a banner that read 'Together to defend and improve the public service,' according to organisers. Police put the figure much lower at 18,000.

In all, some 200,000 people took part in protests in 142 cities, according to police but union organisers said 300,000 had marched in the streets in defence of public sector jobs.

Clashes broke out during a march of 2,000 students in southeastern Grenoble, as youths hurled cans and bottles at riot police who responded with tear gas. Police blamed the violence on a small group of troublemakers.

Education Minister Xavier Darcos reiterated the government's determination to pare down the education department, the biggest ministry employing some 1.2 million people.

He said the key issue facing French education was not saving jobs, but the challenge of providing better education.

'When you have 1.2 million civil servants, it's not true that a few thousand jobs here or there is going to settle the problem.'

High school students have since March staged protests that have at times turned violent against the planned job cuts in education but the movement appears to be losing momentum.

No disruptions were reported in transport but unions at the SNCF rail operator, RATP Paris metro service and Air France said they will take part in the May 22 strike.

Unions will be protesting government plans to make public sector employees work an extra year to be entitled to a full pension. -- AFP