Macron and Uber Era Threaten Role of Once-Powerful French Union

Philippe Martinez sits in a black leather chair facing a poster of the revolutionary legend Che Guevara in his top-floor, cigarette-smoke-smelling office on the eastern edge of Paris, contending with his trade union’s growing irrelevance to a new generation of workers.

The 56-year-old leader of France’s Confederation Generale du Travail -- which at the height of its power could bring the country to a standstill and send shivers down the spines of presidents -- is struggling to reach younger workers, draw them into the union movement and tailor collective action to an era of technology and individualism.