FRENCH ACTORS MARCH IN PARIS DURING DEMONSTRATION OVER UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS, 2003-07-08 (photo)

A member of France's performing arts profession carries a sign which reads "Hostages of the MEDEF", France's employer's association, during a protest march in Paris, July 8, 2003. Performing artists, actors and stagehands held protests in Avignon, La Rochelle and Paris - and a group even disrupted the Tour de France cycle race - as unions met employers ahead of a vote in the evening on whether to continue the action. Tired of abuse of the generous benefit system, the government wants performers to put in more hours before they can claim unemployment benefit, a potential blow to a profession that is often out of work for long periods. REUTERS/John Schults