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What to expect from October 6 protests in France
Unions back student protests as hundreds of schools remain closed today
Major student protests are set to take place tomorrow (October 6) in France, after hundreds of schools remained closed today as protests – sometimes violent – continued.
Unions representing high school pupils and students have called for a major day of protest, with schools set to be shut and thousands joining marches.
Several union groups representing teachers and school staff – FSU, CGT, FO, CFDT, UNSA, SUD – have called on members to join, including through strike action.
They have also called on members to protect protesting teens and open up spaces for demonstrations and meetings.
Union strike action mostly applies to workers in schools, but all union members have been called to back pupils and students in their demands. Separate strikes by energy workers are also taking place tomorrow.
France’s parents union has also backed the action, saying pupils must be allowed to air concerns without the risk of violence. It has called on people, including parents, to join demonstrations on Tuesday.
Pupils at French high schools (lycées) have been protesting for over a week, citing poor classroom conditions and a lack of funding for France’s education system.
Protests have become increasingly violent, with thousands arrested and hundreds injured.
What disruption is expected?
Tuesday is expected to be another day of major disruption for lycées and universities across France.
On Monday, 413 high schools were disrupted, said France’s education ministry.
Orders banning demonstrations and groups meeting outside closed establishments are expected on Tuesday, after being issued at the end of the week at schools closed for safety reasons.
Exact disruption to schools tomorrow is not yet known, but it is again expected that several hundred will close either through government orders or blockades by students, with even more affected by peaceful protests.
Unions are not joining the movement en masse, and it is mostly teaching staff already impacted by the closures and disruption that will strike.
Other sectors should remain unaffected, except where there are already calls for strike action to take place (such as the energy sector).
Primary schools are unlikely to be impacted by closures tomorrow, with student unions not covering pupils at these establishments.
There are no reports of teachers at primary schools planning major strike action.
However, certain middle schools (collèges) may be impacted, with some having already been affected.
Note that primary schools and nurseries (maternelles) are covered by minimum service rules, and if there are closures due to strike action, local authorities are legally required to look after pupils for the day, even if classes are not held. Again, no closures are expected tomorrow to primary schools or nurseries.
Lycées and collèges are not covered by minimum service rules, and if schools are closed there is no responsibility for local authorities to look after pupils.
Unions step in
Student and pupil unions had already planned for a day of action on October 6 following the start of their protests at the end of September.
Calls for the national day of action have grown as protests at lycées sparked up around France, many leading to clashes between teenagers and police officers.
The protests have been controversial, with claims by the government that the protests have been organised by far-left groups, including the La France Insoumise party.
Pupils in turn have cited police aggression as a main cause of violence.
With unions officially joining the action, there is hope that tomorrow’s demonstrations will run more smoothly.
Some unions will bring their own security and ‘cordons’ to organised and official protests, standing alongside protesting students in marches.
A list of organised marches is available here.
Threat of wider discontent
Unions have been buoyed by a high turnout to public-sector strikes last week on September 29, with the CGT saying that 300,000 workers joined marches (interior ministry figures are around 200,000).
France’s major unions have threatened further action – including a potential general strike of both private- and public- sector workers – in light of the 2027 budget, with the draft bill being received poorly by parties on both the right and left.
In addition, the risk of a new round of gilets jaunes (Yellow Vests) protests lingers, with the first action of the renewed protests scheduled for October 17, although it remains unclear who is behind the calls.
There are growing concerns for the government that these protest movements – currently separate – will begin to coalesce into one mass anti-government movement, creating widespread disruption.
Students have mimicked the gilets jaunes in naming the current protest actions ‘Acts’, as the populist movement did for its original protests in 2018. This signifies an air of openness and reciprocation to the movement.
