French unions warn of indefinite Paris transport strike in battle to boost wages

The Paris metro was at a standstill Thursday with operators threatening to stage an indefinite strike next week amid a dispute over pay and conditions. Up to 4,000 demonstrators marched though central Paris – and up to 60,000 nationwide – as part of a multi-sector protest to pressure the government over its pension reform.

A protester holds a placard reading "To be able to fill the fridge with dignity" during a national and interprofessional mobilisation day called by the CGT union in Paris on November 10, 2022. AFP - THOMAS SAMSON

Seven lines of the Paris metro were completely closed and seven others open only during rush hour as the UNSA RATP transport union warned it could not rule out a repeat of the rolling strikes that crippled the French capital in December 2019.

"I say it clearly, if our demands are not met the movement will last much longer than today," union boss Arole Lamasse told BFMTV.

All unions affiliated with the RATP metro operator urged staff to down tools.

"Today is a big warning shot and we hope they will hear it," warned the secretary general of the hardline CGT RATP union, Bertrand Hammache. He was speaking to journalists from the Paris march.

At a Senate hearing on Wednesday, future RATP boss Jean Castex, a former prime minister, said he would open wage negotiations in December.

L´UNSA groupe RATP mobilisée ce matin devant le siège de la RATP pour la grève du 10 novembre #UNSA #ratp #greve pic.twitter.com/u4u0aqgOyF

— UNSA GROUPE RATP (@Unsa_grouperatp) November 10, 2022

Pinch of soaring prices

Unions representing the RATP's nearly 70,000 employees say they are feeling the pinch of soaring prices, but are also overstretched because of insufficient hiring, resulting in increased sick leave.

That has led to more service delays or lower frequency on busy metro lines in recent months, causing headaches for the system's roughly 12 million daily users.

The RATP has admitted to being short of a hundred metro drivers and several hundred bus drivers. Recruitment stagnated during the Covid pandemic and has not returned to its initial level.

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Unions say such positions struggle to attract applicants.

"We only had a 1.1 percent increase over the whole year despite high inflation," Vincent Gautheron, spokesman for the CGT RATP told France Info. His union is demanding a salary increase of €320 per month from entry level.

Wages rather than bonuses

Unions have staged strikes across several sectors in recent weeks, seeking pay hikes or increased hiring as spiralling energy costs feed into widespread inflation. 

At the national level, the CGT called for a national day of striking and protest marches in a bid to boost to the minimum wage, an increase in the civil service index point and the indexing of wages to inflation.

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The secretary general of the CGT, Philippe Martinez, earlier this week defended the increase in wages rather than the distribution of bonuses, promoted by employers and the government.

"The salary is every month, it's social security contributions. Bonuses (...) it's one shot," he said.

The strike aims also to ratchet up pressure on President Emmanuel Macron before he brings a controversial pensions overhaul bill to parliament, which would require millions of people to work longer before retiring.