France: Strikes and protests September 21-25 /update 1

Event

Labor unions have announced three days of strikes and protests to be staged on September 21, September 23, and September 25 to denounce new reforms set to deregulate the labor market. According to the French government, these new laws will be adopted by the Council of Ministers on Friday, September 22, and will come into effect shortly thereafter.

One of France’s main labor unions, General Confederation of Labor (CGT), will hold a nationwide strike on Thursday, September 21, set to affect transportation services, public institutions, and the health and education sectors. The three main labor unions representing rail workers (CGT, Una, and Sud-Rail) at the SNCF (France’s state-owned railway company) have called employees to join the strike effort. According to the SNCF, 95 percent of its high-speed trains will be running although some significant disruptions are expected on commuter rail lines throughout the Paris region (Île-de-France) and across other regional rail networks. Additional details of the strike will be provided on the SNCF website in the upcoming hours. Likewise, air traffic controlers are reportedly expected to strike, although limited information has been released.

A protest march is also set to take place starting at 14:00 (local time) at Place du 18 juin 1940 (Montparnasse) and ending at Place d’Italie. Further protests are expected to take place in France’s major cities.

Former presidential candidate and current leader of the political party La France Insoumise Jean-Luc Mélenchon has called for mass street protests to take place throughout the country on Saturday, September 23. A demonstration is scheduled at 14:00 (local time) at Paris’s Place de la Bastille.

In addition, several unions have called on truck drivers to launch an indefinite strike and to erect roadblocks near oil facilities on Monday, September 25, which could affect fuel supplies at service stations.

Context

These protests follow a related September 12 general strike and protests, which gathered between 223,000 and 400,000 people throughout France. Demonstrations took place in the country’s major cities and some regional rail networks experienced disruptions.

On September 18, truck drivers staged a slow-down strike to denounce the new labor laws, causing widespread traffic congestion around France’s main cities, including Paris, Lyon, and Lille.

Advice

Travelers are advised to keep abreast of the situation, confirm their travel reservations and itineraries, and anticipate transportation disruptions.