Workers at a Pier Import store outside of Paris held the CEO and managers overnight in hopes of gaining greater layoff benefits. Pier Import declared bankruptcy in September and has plans to layoff around 140 workers. The workers voted to release the managers, but also stated that they were willing to strike and shut down stores to get more money out of the layoffs. A government official condemned the actions, saying that negotiations and violence do not go together.
See "French Workers seize boss of Pier Import store", The Boston Globe, February 1, 2010