A planned two-day strike by Air France staff beginning on Tuesday was expected to provoke further chaos in France and Europe, already hit this month by rail network stoppages.
So what are the strikes about, how will this affect travelers and what is the deal with the French and strikes anyway?
Rail workers, students… and rubbish collectors
France has seen a wide array of industrial action in the last few months.
People look at an information board during an SNCF French national railways strike at the Gare de Saint Lazare on April 3, 2018 in Paris, France. /VCG Photo
Staff at state rail operator SNCF started rolling strikes this month that are set to continue two days out of every five until June 28 to protest restructuring plans.
Close to half of all rail workers took part in the first wave of strikes on April 3, and as few as one in eight high-speed TGV trains ran, bringing travel on certain lines to a standstill and causing havoc not just for France's 4.5 million daily train passengers but also in neighboring Switzerland, Belgium and Germany.
This has eased off somewhat but over a third of staff necessary for operating trains stopped work last week, the SNCF said.
Striking workers look on as representatives speak at Lille Flandres Station in Lille, France, April 4, 2018. /VCG Photo
Air France has meanwhile had seven days of strike since February. Airline staff are asking for raises after years of frozen pay.
On Tuesday, the national carrier said it will only operate 70 percent of flights, likely disrupting connections across Europe.
Not just the transportation network has been hit. Students have taken to the streets and occupied university buildings around the country. They are angry at plans to introduce a selection process for university courses in a bid to avoid overcrowding.
Rubbish collectors and civil servants have also joined in the action.
The CGT trade union meanwhile called in late March for a three-month strike by electricity and gas employees, including power cuts.
French President Emmanuel Macron poses before a TV interview in Paris, France, April 15, 2018. /VCG Photo
ven security personnel at the Eiffel Tower caused the closure on Friday of the world famous Paris landmark.
Most of the strikes are related to reforms that President Emmanuel Macron has been trying to push through to revive the economy and battle unemployment – including unpopular measures such as ending life-long job security, early retirement and other long-held perks for certain workers.
** France’s love of strikes**
To outsiders, especially travelers seeking to navigate their way around Europe when air and rail connections are down, it may seem as if the French are constantly on strike or in the streets.
“Spring in France is protest season, and manifs (demos) sprout in the warmer weather like crocuses,” The Economist wrote last week.
A protester holds a sign reading "Macron, you are derailing" during a joint demonstration of French SNCF railway workers and students in Nantes, western France, April 14, 2018, to protest against planned reforms of the French government. /VCG Photo
Only about eight percent of French workers are members of a trade union, far below the EU average of 23 percent, according to data from the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI).
But they consistently stand near the top of European charts ranking countries with the most strike days.
This comes down to the fact that the relationship in France between unions, companies and the government is confrontational, Stephane Sirot, a specialist in trade union and strike history, explained to Swiss radio RTS 1.
“First, we strike, and then we negotiate,” he said.
Students demonstrate to protest against French government's string of reforms, on March 22, 2018 in Paris, France. /VCG Photo
Social action expert Jean-François Chantaraud put it more succinctly during another wave of protests in 2016, telling the daily Le Figaro: “Revolution is in the genes of French culture.”
The revolutionary ideals of “Liberté, égalité, fraternité” continue to permeate society. The striking students, for instance, have argued that the new reforms are contrary to the “French social model,” which guarantees everyone’s right to study.
Even today, stranded commuters and others whose daily routine has been disrupted by a strike often show understanding for the strikers’ demands… to a degree.
An Ifop poll for the daily Journal du Dimanche on April 12-13 found 46 percent of French people supported the SNCF stoppage, while 54 percent opposed it.
The spirit of ‘68
The spirit of ’68 – the mass protests that engulfed Paris and France in May 1968, accompanied by images of riot police clashing with strikers and protesters hurling cobblestones – also continues to capture French imagination.
French CRS riot police pursue protesters, during a demonstration by French state-owned railway company SNCF workers and students as part of a nationwide strike, in Paris, France, April 3, 2018. /VCG Photo
The strikes and student protests defined a generation and even today, the label of “soixante-huitard” – “68er” in French – is still carried as a badge of honor by some.
Now observers fear this new wave of protests against Macron’s policies could snowball as the 50th anniversary of the iconic protests approaches.
On Monday, Air France said it had made a final offer to unions of a two-percent pay raise for 2018. The unions have until Friday to respond.
The airline has estimated that the strikes, including those planned for Tuesday and Wednesday would cost it 220 million euros.
The SNCF has estimated it has lost about 24 million euros per day of strike.
(CGTN)