Historical Organization
CGT
CGT
Details
Organization Timeline
Nationwide strike and demonstrations against pension reform
📅 13 May 2003Trade unions called a nationwide day of action against plans to lengthen contribution periods and reshape public-sector pensions. Public transport and education workers were especially active, while...
Undocumented workers launch coordinated workplace strikes
📅 15 April 2008Hundreds of undocumented workers began coordinated strikes and workplace occupations in Île-de-France, including in cleaning, construction and catering. Organized with union and migrant-rights...
Undocumented workers occupy the National Museum of Immigration
📅 7 October 2010Around 500 undocumented workers occupied the entrance hall and steps of the Cité nationale de l’histoire de l’immigration in Paris. They demanded that authorities honor commitments to regularize...
Peak national protest day against pension-age reform
📅 12 October 2010A nationwide strike and demonstrations opposed a reform raising the statutory retirement age from 60 to 62. Transport, refinery, education and other workers joined the action, with students also...
Students and unions launch mass mobilization against the El Khomri labor bill
📅 9 March 2016Youth organizations and trade unions organized marches and strikes against a proposed labor-law overhaul that they said weakened worker protections and job security. High-school blockades, transit...
Nationwide demonstrations renew opposition to the labor-law reform
📅 9 April 2016More than 200 demonstrations and gatherings took place across France in a further day of action against the proposed labor bill. Organizers included trade unions and youth organizations, with students...
Paris march against labor bill proceeds on a sharply restricted route
📅 23 June 2016After police initially prohibited the planned march, unions negotiated permission for a short loop around the Bastille and Arsenal basin. Demonstrators continued to oppose the labor bill and to defend...
Workers deliver results of a nationwide citizen vote on the labor bill
📅 28 June 2016A union-led citizen vote on the proposed labor law reported 704,129 participants, with 647,798 voting for withdrawal of the bill. The results were delivered to the Élysée by an inter-union...
Trade unions stage first nationwide protest against Macron’s labor ordinances
📅 12 September 2017The CGT called a national day of demonstrations and strikes against the government’s planned labor-code ordinances. The union reported nearly 200 rallies and more than 4,000 strike calls across...
Public-sector workers, rail staff and students strike and march
📅 22 March 2018A nationwide day of action brought civil servants, railway workers, students and retirees into the streets. Public employees opposed pay freezes, job cuts and changes to public services; rail staff...
May Day marches call for labor solidarity amid a divided union front
📅 1 May 2018Trade unions and allied groups marched in Paris and across France, calling for a “convergence of struggles” amid disputes over public services and labor reforms. The Paris union march was disrupted by...
Yellow Vests and union members join a national strike day
📅 5 February 2019The CGT’s national mobilization brought Yellow Vest demonstrators into the same streets as union members, students, teachers and postal workers. The day tested whether a Saturday-based,...
Yellow Vests join May Day marches amid disputes over policing
📅 1 May 2019Yellow Vest groups joined the traditional May Day demonstration in Paris alongside union contingents and other activists. Politis reported on the complex mix of participants and on the government’s...
Undocumented workers strike at twelve sites in Île-de-France
📅 1 October 2019About 150 undocumented workers, supported by the CGT, stopped work across twelve sites in Paris, Hauts-de-Seine and Seine-Saint-Denis. Basta! reported workers in restaurants, cleaning, logistics,...
A coordinated strike wins regularization for undocumented workers
📅 10 October 2019Basta! reported that roughly one hundred workers won regularization after coordinated strikes at multiple Île-de-France workplaces. Workers had organized pickets and occupations in sectors where...
#NousToutes holds a second nationwide march against gender violence
📅 23 November 2019#NousToutes organized marches in Paris and other cities against sexist and sexual violence and feminicides. The collective called for substantial public funding, prevention and support, and an end...
Yellow Vests take part in the pension-reform strike movement
📅 5 December 2019The Yellow Vests’ national assembly in Montpellier had called for joining the planned December strike against pension reform. On 5 December, Yellow Vest groups appeared alongside union contingents and...
Health and care workers mobilize nationwide for hospital resources
📅 16 June 2020Thousands of health, social-care and elder-care workers and their supporters mobilized in more than 250 gatherings. They demanded more staff, hospital beds and wage improvements after years of...
Education assistants and disability-support staff strike over precarity
📅 1 December 2020Assistant education staff and AESH workers mobilized in schools, seeking dignified pay, stable employment, more staffing and recognition of their work. FSU backed the locally organized action. The...
Yellow Vests march alongside undocumented workers and feminist groups
📅 1 May 2021At the Paris May Day march, Yellow Vest participants joined union members, undocumented-worker collectives, students and feminist groups. Politis described the shared procession as a meeting of...
Unions call a nationwide strike for wages and the right to strike
📅 18 October 2022With refinery stoppages disrupting fuel supplies, unions called a cross-sector strike seeking higher wages and defending the right to strike. The action brought together workers in transport, energy...
Nationwide strike and protest against the pension reform
📅 23 March 2023A ninth national day of action brought workers, students and other opponents into demonstrations against the pension reform. The movement persisted after the government's use of Article 49.3, with...
National marches oppose systemic racism and police violence
📅 23 September 2023Families, neighborhood groups, unions and anti-racist activists marched in cities across France for public liberties, social justice and an end to systemic racism and police violence. The call...
Undocumented workers occupy the Paris Olympic Arena in a strike wave
📅 24 October 2023As part of coordinated action by more than 800 undocumented workers, 100–150 construction workers occupied the Arena at Porte de la Chapelle while hundreds of others picketed employment agencies....
Authorized Paris march calls for a Gaza ceasefire
📅 4 November 2023Thousands marched in Paris for a ceasefire and in solidarity with Palestinians, in one of the first large authorized gatherings after the government’s initial restrictions. The Council of State had...
Union coalition returns to the streets for a Gaza ceasefire
📅 18 November 2023A further Paris march, called by a union coalition, demanded a ceasefire and humanitarian protection for civilians in Gaza. Crowd estimates again differed between police and organizers. Participants...
Public-service workers strike for pay increases
📅 19 March 2024Public-service workers held strikes and demonstrations across France, demanding pay measures to offset inflation and protect purchasing power. The mobilization included teachers, local and central...
May Day march links worker rights, wages and international solidarity
📅 1 May 2024Workers and union members marched in cities across France, raising demands on wages, unemployment benefits and working conditions. The Paris march also included calls for a ceasefire in Gaza and...
Public-sector unions strike over sick-leave cuts and pay
📅 5 December 2024A broad inter-union coalition called public employees across France to strike and demonstrate against proposed unpaid sick-leave days and reduced compensation, while demanding wage improvements and...
Health and social-care workers strike over staffing and conditions
📅 1 April 2025Workers in public and private health and social-care services mobilized for better wages, staffing and working conditions. The action included hospitals, elder care and social support services,...
Inter-union strike opposes austerity measures in the 2026 budget plan
📅 18 September 2025Eight union confederations called a cross-sector strike and demonstrations against budget proposals they said would cut public services, freeze wages and benefits, and shift fiscal costs onto...
Public-service workers strike over wages and conditions
📅 29 September 2026Unions representing public-service workers hold a nationwide strike and demonstrations over pay, recruitment and working conditions. Their call connects the defense of education and other public...
Nationwide “Act III” marches unite students and supporters
📅 6 October 2026Students, parents, teachers and other supporters march in multiple cities. The Interior Ministry counts about 266,000 participants; student organizers report about 450,000. The scale marks a move from...
CGT calls for a November 5 strike and peaceful marches
📅 21 October 2026The CGT calls for a nationwide strike on November 5 and says the October 17 demonstrations marked a new stage in mobilization. It also offers support for peaceful demonstrations on October 24 and...
Demonstrations return nationwide amid protest restrictions
📅 24 October 2026Further demonstrations take place across France amid heavy policing and bans in some cities. The CGT reports nearly 800,000 participants; Reuters reports an Interior Ministry estimate of 410,000....
Anti-racist and antifascist march opposes the RN congress in Orléans
📅 24 October 2026A broad coalition marches against the Rassemblement National congress in Orléans. Politis reports a call by roughly seventy organizations; attendance estimates differed, with police reporting 13,000...
Unions call further rallies and a November strike
📅 25 October 2026Following the October 24 marches, unions call for further demonstrations on October 31 and a nationwide strike on November 5. These are planned actions as of October 25; the chronology records the...
French students reject concessions and continue protests
📅 26 October 2026On 26 October, student representatives said the government’s education package did not meet their demands and vowed to continue mobilizing. The movement has widened from grievances over admissions and...
Anti-racism gathering in Paris after Trappes attack
📅 26 October 2026The CGT finance-sector union called a gathering at Place Stalingrad in Paris at 19:00 on 26 October following the racist shooting in Trappes and La Verrière. The French Human Rights League also called...
Dijon anti-racist gathering mourns Pengo Bossio Wangi and challenges racist rhetoric
📅 27 October 2026On 27 October, anti-racist organizations and unions held a gathering and march in Dijon after Pengo Bossio Wangi was killed in a shooting in Trappes. Organizers named racism and Islamophobia as part...
French unions join nationwide strike and demonstrations with student movement
📅 5 November 2026On 5 November, the CFDT, CGT, FO, UNSA and FSU called strikes and demonstrations over wages, pensions, public services, employment and industry, inviting students and retirees to join. The CGT...
French Saturday protests draw competing turnout estimates as unions, students and Yellow Vests mobilise
📅 7 November 2026Al Jazeera reported that the Interior Ministry counted 146,000 protesters nationwide, including 46,000 in Paris, while unions estimated 250,000 nationwide and 75,000 in Paris. AFP reported that...
Education unions call a new strike and demonstrations for 10 November
📅 7 November 2026The SNES-FSU and a union coalition called for a national education-sector strike and demonstrations on Tuesday, November 10, over pay, staffing, student support and working conditions. The union...
France advances a 1.6% minimum-wage rise as unions call for broader pay increases and a strike
📅 9 November 2026After a social conference with unions and employers on 9 November, the French government announced a 1.6% rise in the SMIC from 1 December, bringing monthly net pay to about €1,502. The CFDT said...
Students and education workers strike as protests continue across France
📅 10 November 2026Trade unions and student organizations called a new national day of strikes and demonstrations on 10 November over school and university funding, staffing, working conditions and access to higher...