October 2 strikes in France: turnout figures by sector

Turnout for yesterday’s strike action was significantly lower than on September 18, leaving doubt if unions will call for a third day of action. 

The Interior Ministry estimates that around 195,000 people turned up to some 250 demonstrations across the country. For their part unions claim some 500,000.

Both figures are far lower than those for September 18. 

Despite this, nearly 70,000 police were deployed across the country by the Interior Ministry, with more than 300 arrests taking place as violence across marches led to several altercations – 26 officers, 10 protestors, and one journalist were reported injured.

Strike turnout was low in several sectors. 

Across the two major civil sectors (‘state’ and ‘local’ workers), turnout was below 5%, as was the 3.7% turnout for state healthcare workers. 

The education sector saw turnout around 6.4%, with numbers higher among teachers in lycées and collèges. 

Public transport services faced minimal disruption, with around 90% of high-speed TGVs running without disruption and 60% of regional TER services unaffected. 

However, one in two Intercités trains were disrupted.