PARIS (Reuters) - The beleaguered leader of France's largest union will stay in his post for now after its executive committee delayed a decision until January on whether to force him to step down.
Thierry Lepaon, the head of the CGT union, won a reprieve late on Tuesday thanks to a unanimous vote after 10 hours of debate over a scandal that has threatened the union's credibility and its ability to fight austerity measures driven by President Francois Hollande.
Lepaon has refused to step down after media reports of lucrative perks linked to his appointment in March 2013, including a 130,000 euro (£102,688) renovation of an apartment rented on his behalf by the union.
He has denied any wrongdoing.
The scandal has exacerbated internal divisions within the CGT, with the union divided over how best to fight Hollande's pro-business economic and labour reforms designed to appease euro zone partners and help reduce the country's deficit.
Results released on Tuesday of union elections held last week showed the CGT was still the leading union for civil servants. The CGT won 23.1 percent of the vote, above its main rival the CFDT, with 19.2 percent.
Still, that was 2.3 percentage points lower than the CGT's last showing in elections in 2011.
An Ifop poll published on Sunday showed that 63 percent of French voters had a negative opinion of the CGT union, up from the 48 percent level seen last year.
(Reporting by Alexandria Sage; Editing by James Regan)
