Romania: 1000s protest at French-owned carmaker Dacia

BUCHAREST, Romania – Thousands of employees at the French-owned Romanian automaker Dacia have protested to demand better infrastructure and more favorable labor laws.

The Automobile Dacia trade union said 8,000 gathered Monday in the southern town of Mioveni, where Dacia, owned by Renault, has its manufacturing base. They demanded that a major highway be built through central Romania to create thousands of jobs.

Workers called for legislation to be changed to discourage the import of second-hand cars, which they say harms Romania's automobile industry. Employees are also calling for better health insurance in their contracts.

Company officials say Dacia employees earn more than double the average monthly wage of 1,900 lei ($470)

More than 90 percent of the cars are exported. Managers said Dacia sold 550,000 cars in 2015.