FEBRUARY 16 STRIKE. The mobilization against the pension reform is not weakening with a fifth strike call launched by the unions for this Thursday, February 16, 2023. But the movement should be less followed than previously. What is planned for the day.
[Mis à jour le 15 février à 11h37] France at a standstill, it is not for now. This Thursday, February 16, 2023, a new day of strike is organized by many unions to continue the fight against pension reform. A mobilization launched while the text is still being studied until Friday in the National Assembly, before going to the Senate. This new call to stop work is the fifth since the beginning of the calendar year. But while the protest is still strong against the bill -6 out of 10 French people oppose it according to an Elabe poll for BFM TV-, mobilization should mark time. It must be said that each day of strike during the week is an unpaid day and, given the current economic context, the stock exchanges seem to have the upper hand over the ambitions of protest, without this necessarily implying a weakening of the protest. . The school holidays being in addition in progress, the call to the strike should be followed less. This is confirmed by the forecasts in various sectors. For the unions, the mobilization of the day is above all symbolic in an attempt to put a final pressure on the deputies. “It was unthinkable for the unions not to mobilize while the text of the pension reform is being debated in the National Assembly” underlined Yvan Ricordeau, national secretary of the CFDT at the Figaro.
A little-followed strike in transport on February 16
As often, the transport sector is the first to respond to the strike call for February 16th. “The trade unions CGT Cheminots, UNSA-Ferroviaire, SUD-Rail and CFDT Cheminots are calling […] to participate massively in the demonstrations and to act by the strike on February 16, 2023 to broaden, amplify the mobilization and prepare the necessary follow-up to bring down this reform”, wrote the inter-union of the SNCF in a press release published on February 10. If the call is echoed by the employees, major disruptions could still weigh on rail traffic on February 16. However, this is not what certain trade unionists are sensing, such as Fabien Dumas, federal secretary of SUD-Rail, who thinks that the strike of February 16 will be “less followed by the railway workers”. In question? “A stack of strike days [qui] can weigh painfully on wages”, recognizes the trade union representative of railway workers to the Figaro. According to him, on February 16 the strikers will be “the usual militants and union members”.
There SNCF published the disruptions to be expected on rail traffic. For the TGV INOUI and OUIGO, the SNCF plans 4 trains out of 5 on average with TGV Province to Province which will run with disrupted traffic with 2 trains out of 3. Note that there will be no Intercités in the night from Wednesday to Thursday and only one TER out of two on average. Full details of the disruptions in this article from Linternaute below.
The RATP also intended to mobilize for the strike of February 16. In its press release, the inter-union called for a strong mobilization of all workers because, “in view of the contempt shown by this government, the inter-union RATP takes its responsibilities”, she indicated to AFP. However, in practice, the traffic will be only slightly disturbed. As the RATP specifies, traffic will be “normal” or “almost normal” on all lines, with the exception of RER B with only two out of three trains planned.
A new strike in the refineries?
The intersyndicale can count on the unions of the refineries to take part in the strikes since the beginning of the protest movement. Will they be mobilized again on February 16? The CGT federation is effectively calling for mobilization for a strike which could take the same form as the previous ones, i.e. the cessation of fuel deliveries without the refining installations also being shut down. Several unions are of the opinion to harden the movement with effective blockades of the sites to exert pressure on the stocks of gasoline, but the employees still oppose such radical strikes.
The energy sector on strike?
The energy sector is likely to mobilize for the February 16 strike. The various CGT federations of energy and industry professions have published a joint statement calling on employees “of ports and docks, railway workers, chemical industries, glass and ceramics and Mines Energy” to mobilize for an “interprofessional mobilization” this Thursday. Employees of nuclear power plants have strongly expressed themselves during previous mobilizations with reductions in energy production and “Robin Hood” operations. At the same time, refineries have also been very active since the beginning of the social movement, with fuel deliveries stopped for each day of the strike.
Strikes
Small strike in schools on February 16?
The strike of February 16 can invite itself in the schools even if with two out of three zones on vacation, the impact of the mobilization will be much less compared to the previous strikes in the educational establishments. Only teachers in zone C (academies of Créteil, Montpellier, Paris, Toulouse and Versailles) will be able to strike, but all teachers in France are invited to take part in the demonstrations. As always, the teachers of the first degree establishments must declare themselves strikers two days in advance, the unions could therefore issue from this Tuesday evening first estimates of the number of striking teachers. On the other hand, the surprise will be complete until the last moment in colleges and high schools.
Airports on strike?
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) has warned of disruptions in air traffic. In a press release, the management foresees disruptions from Wednesday February 15, 2023 to Friday February 17 at 6 a.m. from and to several airports including Paris-Orly, Toulouse, Marseille, Lyon, Montpellier and Nantes. “Cancellations and disruptions are to be expected” noted the DGAC. It is already planned that 30% of flights will be canceled this Thursday at Orly airport.
During February, the various unions took part in the mobilizations with often minimal disturbances despite the cancellation of short and medium-haul flights.