French unions have called for a national day of strike action and widespread protests on Tuesday to pile pressure on the government and MPs ahead of a big day of discussions on the government's 2026 budget proposal.
Three French unions – CGT, FSU and Solidaires – have called for the national, cross-sector strike action as part of ongoing opposition to the draft 2026 Budget, which is currently going through parliament and has to be agreed by the end of the year.
Sophie Binet, leader of the hard-left CGT union, has described the bill – which seeks to save nearly €44 billion in spending cuts, new revenue measures and taxes – as a "horror show".
"There is money – in the pockets of the ultra-rich and big business!" is one of the slogans for the strike.
In a press release, the three unions slammed the lack of fiscal justice in the draft Budget and the "resistance from the right and far right, who have joined forces to protect large fortunes".
The unions are demanding more, not less, funding for public services, jobs, pensions, industries and culture.
However, the absence of the centrist CFDT union – France's largest – could limit the extent of strike action.
France roiled by anti-austerity protests as unions demand budget rethink
Transport
France’s train provider, the SNCF, says it does not expect disruption on mainline train services and neither the high-speed TGV nor Eurostar should be impacted.
Despite a call for walkout among public transport workers (bus, tramway, Metro) Paris operator RATP said it anticipated normal services across its network.
Two minority Air France pilots’ unions plan to strike on Tuesday over cuts to jobs, which could lead to flight alterations.
Schools
The FSU union represents over 80 percent of French teachers and class closures are expected in both primary and secondary schools.
Some 4,000 teaching posts will be cut in the 2026 Budget.
"There is no shortage of reasons to go on strike in our professions," said the FSU-SNUipp, the largest primary-teaching union, citing "frozen pay, worsening working conditions, working time, burnout, hierarchical pressure, pension reform" and “insufficient resources”.
Snes-FSU, the main secondary-teaching union wants the job cuts cancelled.
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Public administration, healthcare
Both CGT and Solidaires have called on public servants to walk out on Tuesday, denouncing the “removal of 3,000 posts in the civil service – especially in education, the France Travail employment office, public finance departments and social-security bodies”.
Hospital doctors cannot walk out, but services in some hospitals could be affected following strike notices covering both the state civil service and the local civil service.
“Health-facility budgets are insufficient for carrying out their public-service missions, salary increases do not even keep up with inflation, and some professions are paid below the minimum wage," says the Health and Social Action branch of the CGT. It demands a general pay rise of 10 percent.
In images: France stages mass protests and strikes over budget cuts
Demonstrations are expected in major French cities, with the Paris protest set to start at 4pm.
The proposed strike action comes ahead of a crucial phase in the debates on Wednesday, when lawmakers will debate plans to scrap the highly contentious changes to the legal age of retirement.
The 2023 pension reform raised the age from 62 to 64 but France's Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has said he will back suspending the reform until presidential polls in 2027.
The Socialist Party has conditioned its support for the Budget on the reform being suspended and renegociated.
