Reports from New Caledonia say a strike by the mainly Kanak USTKE union has affected services in the town of Thio, with rubbish no longer being collected.
The territory's daily newspaper reports that union backers have also blocked the town hall in protest at the hiring of a secretary general from France.
The union says the country should be built with people from the country.
The protest comes as the municipality failed to pass a budget last month because a majority of council members stayed away.
