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Radio France Internationale
Radio France Internationale
National
RFI

French prison guards call for strike action as overcrowding crisis deepens

A penitentiary officer closes a door at the "Maison d'arret" (prison) des Hauts-de-Seine, in Nanterre, suburbs of Paris, on 15 January 2026. AFP - STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN

France’s prisons are edging closer to a breaking point, with one of the country’s main prison guard unions calling for strike action to force what it says are long-overdue reforms.

The UFAP–UNSA union announced on Monday that staff across dozens of facilities could walk out in protest at chronic overcrowding and a deepening staffing crisis – two issues that have been steadily intensifying for months.

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