Disgruntled workers at the French arm of telecommunications vendor Nortel have threatened to blow up its Yvelines-based factory, unless decent redundancy packages are secured.

According to French daily Le Parisien, workers at the factory placed gas cylinders in front of the plant, on Wednesday. They were suspected to be empty.

The workers are believed to have staged the mock explosion in response to the 480 jobs that are set to be axed following bankruptcy proceedings.

Various sources, including Reuters, have cited Le Parisien saying the workers are bitter about the way authorities have been handling the issue.

A union member told the newspaper: “We are exasperated by the practices of the administrator. A meeting was planned yesterday, but it was cancelled at the last minute.

“It is not the first time. They have been stringing us along for four days. They have no respect for us.”

The threat to blow up a factory is the second to be made this week by French workers. Staff at bankrupt car parts manufacturer New Fabris have also warned they would blow up the Châtellerault-based plant if they did not receive compensation from Renault and Peugeot Citroen.

On LCI television, Labour minister Xavier Darcos said: “We are going to speak to each other; we will find solutions that do not require resorting to extreme violence.”