French trade unions have begun a nationwide strike as they remain in deadlock with the government over walkouts at oil depots that have sparked fuel shortages.

Tuesday's strike will primarily affect public sectors such as schools and transportation.

The move comes after workers at several refineries and depots operated by energy giant TotalEnergies voted to extend their strike action.

Their industrial action has seriously disrupted fuel distribution across the country but particularly in northern and central France and the Paris region.

Motorists have scrambled to fill tanks as the fuel strike, which has lasted for nearly three weeks, cripples supplies at just over 30 percent of France's service stations and has had a knock-on effect across all sectors of the economy.

President Emmanuel Macron's government used requisitioning powers to force some strikers back to open fuel depots, a move that infuriated unions but has so far been upheld in the courts.

"We will continue to do the utmost," Macron said after a meeting Monday with ministers, adding he wanted the crisis "to be resolved as quickly as possible".

CGT boss Philippe Martinez suggested Monday that the government "get around a table" with the unions to discuss an increase in France's minimum wage.

"Requisitioning is unacceptable and it's never the right solution," added Frederic Souillot, general secretary of the FO union which is also taking part in the day of strike action, the unions' biggest challenge to Macron since he won a new presidential term in May.

READ MORE: Strikes continue at French oil refineries, storage sites

Trains cancelled

The leftist CGT and FO called for a nationwide strike Tuesday for higher salaries, and against government requisitions of oil installations, threatening to cripple public transport in particular.

Unions in other industries and the public sector have also announced action to protest against the twin impact of soaring energy prices and overall inflation on the cost of living.

Rail operator SNCF will see "severe disruptions" with half of train services cancelled, Transport Minister Clement Beaune said.

Suburban services in the Paris region as well as bus services will also be impacted, operator RATP said, but the inner-Paris metro system should be mostly unaffected.

The latest strike call comes after tens of thousands of protesters marched in Paris on Sunday to express their frustration at the rising cost of living.

The demonstration was called by the left-wing political opposition and led by the head of the France Unbowed (LFI) party, Jean-Luc Melenchon.

Some protesters wore yellow fluorescent vests, the symbol of the anti-government protests in 2018 that shook the government of Macron.

Organisers claimed 140,000 people attended Sunday's march, but police said there were 30,000.

READ MORE: Why French workers’ strike could be another energy headache for Europe