The strike against the pension reform continued this Wednesday, March 8, 2023 in France. Ports were blocked, while the movement was renewed in refineries. The SNCF has announced new disruptions for several days.
Here is the map of the events organized this Wednesday by feminist associations in the large and medium-sized cities of France:
Main area of ??concern for the French on a day of strike, transport is still affected by a new mobilization of employees of the SNCF, the RATP but also other local public transport authorities. At the SNCF, new disturbances are impacting the French, the company announced. Traffic is “very severely disrupted” this Wednesday, the day after a Tuesday during which few trains will have circulated in France.
Similar situation at the RATP. The Paris transport authority detailed the disruptions affecting the circulation of metros, RER, trams and buses throughout the day on Wednesday. In a press release, it indicates that traffic is “very disrupted on the RER and metro networks” but is “improving with almost normal traffic on the bus network and normal on the tram network.”
On the side of National Education, this March 8 could be marked by a more limited strike movement than the day before. If the South union calls for a new day of mobilization against the pension reform, the organization also intends to defend the cause of AESH, 92% of whom are women, and denounce precarious jobs in this sector. Usually, the strike movement is almost no longer followed the day after the main date. Above all, in kindergarten and primary, parents must be notified 48 hours in advance of the presence or absence of the teacher. The elements were therefore communicated on Monday. As for colleges and high schools, teachers are free to go on strike the same morning.
In the field of health, a new day of mobilization is also planned for this Wednesday, March 8. It is part of a different context than that of pension reform since it is a question here of denouncing a series of decisions taken in the medical sector. A strike notice for the day was thus filed by the CGT, valid for all medical and non-medical staff in hospitals, private medical establishments, the French Blood Establishment or even medico-social services.
Another sector whose strike could greatly impact the French: refineries and nuclear power plants. In the first, a renewable strike movement has been launched since March 6 in the evening. With what impact? The ambitions initially diverged according to the sites. At Esso-ExxonMobil, “no entry or exit of fuel” should be possible, announced the CGT to 76Actu, when, at Total, “we are not looking for shortages. We just want to hit the economy of companies.”
However, since Tuesday March 7, all fuel shipments from all refineries in France (TotalEnergies, Esso-ExxonMobil and Petroineos) have been blocked. No truck left these sites. What raise the threat of a fuel shortage? “Stocks are high” we temper on the side of the Union Française des Industries Pétrolières, Énergies et Mobilités. No need to rush to the pumps.
As for nuclear power plants, the movement initiated on Friday evening has lowered electricity production in France. This reduction is currently equivalent to five shut down nuclear reactors. The movement is renewable every day but remains supervised in order to avoid power cuts.
The strike could also affect garbage collectors again, who joined the movement this week. In Paris, waste was not collected in several districts of the capital and the waste treatment site at Porte d’Ivry was blocked by employees. Insalubrity could quickly reach the streets of Paris in the event of renewal of the movement. This could also be the case in Montpellier where garbage collectors are also on strike and could continue their mobilization.