A national protest movement organised for September 10 is set to coincide with several strikes, potentially causing widespread disruption across many sectors.
The citizens protest movement Bloquons tout has called for nationwide protests on Wednesday, primarily over the 2026 budget plans of departing Prime Minister François Bayrou and in particular his suggestion of ending two bank holidays.
The grassroots movement is reminiscent of the gilets jaunes but with some key differences such as choosing a weekday for action as opposed to the Saturdays chosen by the gilets jaunes.
Several unions, including the CGT and Solidaires, confirmed they would support Wednesday's action by acting as a vessel for strike motions for those wishing to act on Wednesday.
Other union groups, specifically in the transport sector, have also called for walkouts.
Protests are planned in cities and towns across France, many organised through social media, with others being backed by unions. An interactive map of demonstrations can be found on French media La Dépêche here.
However, the relative secrecy of the call for action means the exact level of disruption will not be known until the day.
Whereas the disruption from strikes will be made clear on Tuesday evening at the latest, the number of people planning to engage in civil protests are unknown.
Estimates suggest at least 100,000 people will join demonstrations across France, not counting those walking out of their job as part of strike action.
Polls suggest just under half of French people support the movement, with another quarter indifferent*.
Several companies are recommending that employees work from home (télétravail) for the day to minimise travel delays.
Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau says that 80,000 police and gendarmes will be deployed and the state will tolerate "no blockages, and no violence."
Overall, it is pointing towards a day of significant disruption – at a time where France will potentially be without a government – and only eight days before a major strike day on September 18 backed by France’s eight major unions.
Below, we review some of the expected disruption.
Railway network, public transport
The transportation sector is a key target for protestors and unions alike.
Several rail unions including SUD-Rail and the CGT-Cheminots have backed walkouts on September 10, covering the French national rail network.
However, the SNCF has said that high-speed TGV lines (InOui and OuiGo services) will run 'normally' with only minimal disruption. International TGV routes into and out of France are also unlikely to be impacted.
Intercités services (long-distance but not high-speed) routes are likely to face disruptions however, as will night trains across France.
Local TER services are more likely to be affected, particularly in the Hauts-de-France, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, and Occitanie regions.
Other regions are likely to face some levels of disruption.
In Paris La Base, a major union supporting workers of the city’s RATP (public transport network), is also calling for workers to walk out.
Major disruption to the RER D and the ‘Ligne R’ to the Parisian suburbs has been announced, although bus and metro lines in the city should mostly be running as normal.
It is advised to check the social media and official websites of local transportation networks for expected disruption to these services.
The SNCF will post revised timetables for tomorrow's trains at 17:00 the evening of September 9.
The SNCF stated that those travelling on TGV and Intercités trains between September 9 and 11 can exchange their ticket for travel on a later date for free, even if their service is not schedule to be disrupted by the strikes.
Southern airports affected
Likewise, the SUD Aérien union (aviation branch of the SUD union) has called for workers to walk out on September 10.
The French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC) announced that between 18:00 - 00:00, half of flights at Marseille, Nice, Figari, Calvi, Bastia, and Ajaccio airports will be cancelled.
Delays may impact flights at other airports due to staff walkouts, even if cancellations are not expected, with disruption expected across the country.
The sector is expected to be hit more widely on September 18 when air traffic controllers stage a walk out, independent of the day of inter-union strike action.
Port workers and ferries
The CGT’s maritime branches have called on port workers to join action on both September 10 and 18.
This is likely to lead to blockades at several major ports across France.
Currently, it is unknown how disruptive this will be to ferry services.
Recent strikes in the sector including blockades and dockworker walkouts have mainly focused on goods shipping, with passenger routes left largely operational.
However the CGT said its motion allows for workers at Brittany Ferries to walk out if they wish, potentially affecting travel with the company.
Currently major ferry operators show Wednesday’s services running as scheduled on website timetables.
In the event of a cancellation or delay they will contact passengers – it is therefore recommended to ensure the ferry company holds your correct details.
Road blockades and toll booth and speed camera action
Drivers are also expected to face disruptions with blockades expected on roads across the country, particularly in the Corrèze and Saône-et-Loire departments according to an official memo sent to French police officers.
Other major roadblocks are expected in the capital as well as cities such as Bordeaux and Nantes.
These blockades may limit traffic passing through or look to divert drivers onto an alternate route.
Several actions targeting speed cameras and toll booths are also reported to be planned, which could see the former destroyed by protesters and the latter forced open to provide drivers ‘free’ access through the barriers.
Farmers set to join the protests are also likely to block roads, potentially those popular with lorries carrying goods into and out of France (such as along the Spanish border), and similar to the gilets jaunes protests, roundabouts may be used as gathering points.
The sporadic and secretive nature of the protests makes it difficult to know exactly where blockades will take place, but drivers should be on alert and keep up to date with local media reports.
Protests are expected at oil refineries in France but as of now there is no risk of a petrol shortage, with stations holding several weeks worth of supplies.
Shops and supermarkets may face surprise closures
Supermarket workers are set to join strike action, resulting in some shops seeing extended queues and surprise closures.
Other workers and owners may walk out of shops or close for the day to join protests.
A call for a wider ‘economic protest’ includes asking people to take cash out of their account for their spending instead of using their bank card, limiting the money banks can make from transaction fees, as well as shopping at smaller local stores as opposed to corporations.
Refuse workers under the CGT umbrella have also been encouraged to strike.
Hospitals
Four major unions are backing strikes and walkouts in the sector on September 10. At the same time, month-long strikes of both hospital staff and civil servants (including those working at public hospitals) has also been called, all set to impact health services on Wednesday.
In particular, unions have cited planned increases to franchises payments by patients using the French healthcare system as one of the major reasons for joining the protests.
Healthcare professionals working in public hospitals must adhere to minimum service requirements, meaning essential healthcare services should not be affected.
However, a lack of administration may affect non-urgent services including outpatient appointments or processing of data. If you have an appointment on Wednesday, call the hospital to check it is still on.
Schools and universities
While there is an ongoing strike in the education sector by teaching unions, student unions and some far-left politicians are calling on students at lycées (secondary schools) and universities to walk out or to ‘occupy’ their buildings.
School transport services are also set to be cancelled in several areas.
*Poll conducted by Ipsos bva - Cesi École d'ingénieurs on behalf of French media outlet La Tribune Dimanche.
