Taxis, air traffic controllers and schools on nationwide strike

Paris police fired tear gas and taxi drivers lit bonfires on a major highway on Tuesday amid nationwide strikes and protests over working conditions and competition from nontraditional services such as Uber.

Prime Minister Manuel Valls agreed to an emergency meeting with taxi drivers on Tuesday afternoon, in an apparent attempt to defuse tensions. Tuesday's protests are the latest challenge to the government as it tries to modernize the economy and find France's place in an increasingly globalized, online marketplace.

One in five flights were canceled at Paris airports and other flights faced delays as air traffic controllers staged a walkout and taxi drivers disrupted roads. Twenty people were detained at protests around the French capital, according to Paris police, and i-Tele television reported that two people were injured at Orly Airport when a shuttle bus tried to force its way past a taxi drivers' blockade.