Unions demand immediate answers as France sees new strikes and protests

More than 600,000 demonstrators took part in rallies across France on Thursday, according to the interior ministry, while five unions staged a day of action calling for increased wages and public‑service funding. The protests were organised by a coalition of labour groups demanding immediate answers from the government.

The left‑wing CGT union reported that 1.57 million people joined Thursday’s mobilisation, describing the turnout as "a level unmatched" since 2023 and highlighting large gatherings in Paris, Marseille, Bordeaux and Lille.

Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said he would convene a "social conference" with unions and employers next Monday, while Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said he had deployed 70,000 police officers and promised "an extremely firm response" to any potential violence.

The unrest began in September over poor conditions and resources in lycées, before spreading to universities, workers and a revived "yellow‑vest" movement protesting high prices.

Unions pledged to raise the coordinated campaign against the government to the next level, and CGT chief Sophie Binet said their message was that "the only thing that will bring this mobilisation to a halt is responding to our demands".

Incidents of disorder were reported in several cities: a car was set alight near the Gallieni bridge over the Rhône in Lyon as hundreds of activists from the radical left‑wing "black bloc" clashed with police; in Rennes, the local prefect said a "hostile group of masked individuals" had gathered in front of the main union march; tear‑gas was used to clear a square in Bordeaux; and a teenager was injured in a stabbing involving a student at a high‑school blockade in the Seine‑Saint‑Denis suburb of northern Paris.

The scale of Thursday’s protests did not match the biggest day of unrest on Saturday 17 October, when more than 2,000 stores were looted and historic buildings were set alight. However, provisional figures for Thursday surpassed those of 17 October, when the interior ministry had recorded 550,000 participants and unions had counted 800,000.

Earlier on Thursday, CFDT union leader Marylise Léon said she would be happy if the current demonstrations matched the level of participation seen on the earlier date.