What to expect from Thursday's strike in France
Thursday marks the third - and likely the most disruptive - in a series of three 'inter-professional' strikes called by the hardline CGT union in protest at the rising cost of living. From trains to planes, schools and Paris public transport, here's how services will be affected.
The one-day strike on Thursday, November 10th, follows two one-day actions in late October and early November, but is set to be the most disruptive yet.
The action has been called by the hardline CGT union in protests at the rising cost of living and below-inflation pay increases that many sectors have experienced. The union is also angry at the government's use of emergency strike-breaking powers during earlier strikes at oil refineries that led to widespread petrol and diesel shortages at filling stations.
Here's how services will be impacted on Thursday;
Paris
This time, disruption will be heavily concentrated on the French capital, where workers on the RATP public transport network have overwhelmingly backed the strike, declaring a jeudi noir (black Thursday) for services.
On the Metro half the lines will not be running at all - namely lines 2, 3bis, 5, 8, 10, 11 and 12.
Lines 3, 4, 6, 7, 7bis, 9 and 13 will operate only during rush hours – 7am to 9.30am and 4.30pm to 7.30pm – and will run limited services during these times.
Lines 1 and 14, which are automated, will run as normal but are likely to be extremely busy.
On the RER, line A will run 1 in 3 of its normal services and will stop at 9pm, while line B – which connects Paris to its two airports – will run normal hours but with only half or 1 in 3 of its normal services. The other RER lines are operated by SNCF, and are not expected to be heavily disrupted.
The RER D saw some delays on Thursday morning, but this was due to a breakdown.
The frequency of bus services have been cut by a third, while tram operations are expected to be nearly normal, except for tram line 5 which will only have services between 5.30am and 10.30am, and 3.30pm and 8.30pm. Tram line 2 will run fewer services than normal.
As of Thursday morning, over 30 stations were closed due to the industrial action, including some stations that have lines that are running. These include stations like Montparnasse Bienvenüe, Champs-Elysées Clémenceau and Miromesnil, according to RATP. You can see the full list HERE.
#greve10novembre Ce jeudi, évitez le métro et le RER
➡️ https://t.co/2aNhbdJveh pic.twitter.com/zcIxpq0LGA
— Le Parisien | transports (@transportsidf) November 9, 2022
Although the capital will be the worst affected, there is likely to be some disruption to services in the rest of France. For example, in Strasbourg nearly 20 bus lines have been disrupted by strike action, but all other transport in the city remained at normal operating levels on Thursday morning.
Trains - on the national rail network SNCF only one union - CGT-Cheminots - has announced that it will join the strike, which means disruption is likely to be very limited.
In other cities, such as Rouen and Montpellier, local rail workers also indicated their intention to strike.
Postal workers - some staff at La Poste have indicated that they will strike, so there could be a delay in deliveries in some parts of the country.
Schools - the last strike took place during the school holidays, but schools are now back and some teachers have indicated that they intend to support the strike. The limited number who have declared so far means it is unlikely that schools will close, but some schools could see disruption to other services such as the canteen and after-school clubs.
Some local authorities - including Le Havre - have already announced that there will be "no school lunches, no after-school clubs" on Thursday.
Health workers - some healthcare workers have also announced a strike, although strike rules mean that frontline staff such as doctors and nurses will remain at work, but might take part in demonstrations. Some auxiliary services such as medical testing laboratories may experience disruption.
Flights - airline workers and airport staff have not joined the strike - they mostly won pay increases after strike action over the summer - so flights will operate as normal.
Demonstrations - demos are also planned, although since most other unions have elected not to join the CGT these are likely to be small affairs. the CGT's secretary general Céline Verzeletti says they expect "between 150 and 200" points of demonstration around the country.
In Paris, the demonstration will take place at Place de la République and it will move in the direction of Place de l'Opéra, starting at 2pm.
Traffic
As a result of the public transport strike, increased road traffic was reported on Thursday morning in the Paris region. As of 8 am, the traffic website Sytadin counted more than 338 km of traffic congestion in Ile-de-France.
Listen to the team at The Local France discuss all the latest news and talking points in the latest episode of our Talking France podcast. Download it here or listen below.
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The one-day strike on Thursday, November 10th, follows two one-day actions in late October and early November, but is set to be the most disruptive yet.
The action has been called by the hardline CGT union in protests at the rising cost of living and below-inflation pay increases that many sectors have experienced. The union is also angry at the government's use of emergency strike-breaking powers during earlier strikes at oil refineries that led to widespread petrol and diesel shortages at filling stations.
Here's how services will be impacted on Thursday;
Paris
This time, disruption will be heavily concentrated on the French capital, where workers on the RATP public transport network have overwhelmingly backed the strike, declaring a jeudi noir (black Thursday) for services.
On the Metro half the lines will not be running at all - namely lines 2, 3bis, 5, 8, 10, 11 and 12.
Lines 3, 4, 6, 7, 7bis, 9 and 13 will operate only during rush hours – 7am to 9.30am and 4.30pm to 7.30pm – and will run limited services during these times.
Lines 1 and 14, which are automated, will run as normal but are likely to be extremely busy.
On the RER, line A will run 1 in 3 of its normal services and will stop at 9pm, while line B – which connects Paris to its two airports – will run normal hours but with only half or 1 in 3 of its normal services. The other RER lines are operated by SNCF, and are not expected to be heavily disrupted.
The RER D saw some delays on Thursday morning, but this was due to a breakdown.
The frequency of bus services have been cut by a third, while tram operations are expected to be nearly normal, except for tram line 5 which will only have services between 5.30am and 10.30am, and 3.30pm and 8.30pm. Tram line 2 will run fewer services than normal.
As of Thursday morning, over 30 stations were closed due to the industrial action, including some stations that have lines that are running. These include stations like Montparnasse Bienvenüe, Champs-Elysées Clémenceau and Miromesnil, according to RATP. You can see the full list HERE.
#greve10novembre Ce jeudi, évitez le métro et le RER
— Le Parisien | transports (@transportsidf) November 9, 2022
➡️ https://t.co/2aNhbdJveh pic.twitter.com/zcIxpq0LGA
Although the capital will be the worst affected, there is likely to be some disruption to services in the rest of France. For example, in Strasbourg nearly 20 bus lines have been disrupted by strike action, but all other transport in the city remained at normal operating levels on Thursday morning.
Trains - on the national rail network SNCF only one union - CGT-Cheminots - has announced that it will join the strike, which means disruption is likely to be very limited.
In other cities, such as Rouen and Montpellier, local rail workers also indicated their intention to strike.
Postal workers - some staff at La Poste have indicated that they will strike, so there could be a delay in deliveries in some parts of the country.
Schools - the last strike took place during the school holidays, but schools are now back and some teachers have indicated that they intend to support the strike. The limited number who have declared so far means it is unlikely that schools will close, but some schools could see disruption to other services such as the canteen and after-school clubs.
Some local authorities - including Le Havre - have already announced that there will be "no school lunches, no after-school clubs" on Thursday.
Health workers - some healthcare workers have also announced a strike, although strike rules mean that frontline staff such as doctors and nurses will remain at work, but might take part in demonstrations. Some auxiliary services such as medical testing laboratories may experience disruption.
Flights - airline workers and airport staff have not joined the strike - they mostly won pay increases after strike action over the summer - so flights will operate as normal.
Demonstrations - demos are also planned, although since most other unions have elected not to join the CGT these are likely to be small affairs. the CGT's secretary general Céline Verzeletti says they expect "between 150 and 200" points of demonstration around the country.
In Paris, the demonstration will take place at Place de la République and it will move in the direction of Place de l'Opéra, starting at 2pm.
Traffic
As a result of the public transport strike, increased road traffic was reported on Thursday morning in the Paris region. As of 8 am, the traffic website Sytadin counted more than 338 km of traffic congestion in Ile-de-France.
Listen to the team at The Local France discuss all the latest news and talking points in the latest episode of our Talking France podcast. Download it here or listen below.
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