PARIS -- French citizens prepared for chaos and the government braced for its biggest test yet on the eve of a planned general strike expected to unite over 5 million public sector workers.


From trains, subways and buses to post offices, schools and hospitals, France's vital functions are to be reduced or utterly suspended for 24 hours beginning Monday night.


The general strike, expected to be France's worst since 1986, was called by unions to protest a pay freeze announced by the government.


It marks the first major labor challenge to conservative premier Alain Jupp?, who came to power in May with promises to cut France's massive deficit and 11.5 percent unemployment.


Jupp? is also under fire for his role in a housing scandal, and plagued by persistent rumors that his resignation is imminent. His office officially denied the rumors Friday.


A preliminary investigation is underway to determine whether Jupp? abused his position as an elected official to gain housing advantages for himself and family members.


Unions announced the strike in September after failed talks with the government, in which they had hoped the government would offer a reduction in the work week along with a hiring increase to make up for the announced pay freeze for 1996.


The government says nearly 40 percent of its deficit-ridden budget goes into public sector employee paychecks, while the unions retort that they are being made scapegoats for France's economic crisis.


Government employees alone, not including state-owned industries, number about 4.1 million.


Jupp? is struggling to hold this year's deficit to 320 billion francs ($64 billion) and cut the 1996 shortfall to 290 billion francs.


The Maastricht accords on European Union require France to bring its deficit down to 3 percent of gross domestic product one year before monetary union on Jan. 1, 1998, and the figure is now above 5 percent.


Doubts about the country's chances of qualifying for European monetary union have sent the france sliding, and the Bank of France took emergency action on Monday to head off a further fall. After tightening lending on Friday to brake the franc's dive, the central bank stepped in a second time, boosting a key lending rate by more than a percentage point. By early afternoon, the franc stood at 3.51 per mark, up from a five-month low of 3.53 hit early Monday.


Initially, Tuesday's strike was only to include bureaucrats and civil servants, but employees of French state-owned companies, including Air France, the state railway company and Renault have announced they will join in the action.


French railway company SNCF said Monday most if not all international trains scheduled to leave Paris Tuesday would be canceled, along with 75 percent of domestic trains. Subway trains and buses will also be limited Tuesday. (AP, Reuters)