French public workers strike over pay as student protests erupt in violence

France woke on Tuesday to the sound of two separate rebellions. Tens of thousands of civil servants—teachers, firefighters, healthcare workers—marched through cities across the country demanding higher wages and better working conditions. At the same time, students at more than 400 schools staged their own protests, and at least 40 of those schools were blockaded. By day's end, police had arrested 440 people, mostly students. Ten others, a mix of students and staff members, had been wounded. Forty-eight police officers were injured as well.

The strikes were a direct response to the government's budget proposal, which would freeze base salaries for state employees in 2027—a measure designed to save 2 billion euros. This would be the fourth consecutive annual freeze and the eighth during Emmanuel Macron's presidency. Union leaders say these freezes have already cost workers more than ten percent of their purchasing power. They are demanding a six percent raise instead. The unions claimed that roughly 300,000 people participated in the one-day action nationwide, though police estimated the Paris turnout at 30,000. The Education Ministry reported that just over eleven percent of teachers and school staff went on strike; participation among other civil servants was lower, likely because workers could not afford to lose a day's pay.

Sophie Binet, general secretary of the General Confederation of Labor, called the moment "a red alert" and told Al Jazeera that the government's anger would not dissipate. She gave the administration 48 hours to reverse the planned cuts before her union would decide on further strike action. The timing was deliberate: the government was set to unveil its full draft budget two days later, and the presidential election looms seven months ahead. Professional firefighters, who had spent the summer battling massive wildfires and say they lack adequate resources, were among those marching.

The student protests emerged from a different set of grievances but reflected similar frustration with the state of public services. Beginning in the Ile-de-France region around Paris, demonstrations spread to other cities as students objected to overcrowded classrooms, teacher shortages, and schools that had become dangerously hot during recent heatwaves. The protests turned violent in some locations: students set fire to rubbish bins and threw projectiles at police, who responded with batons and tear gas. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said that of the 440 people detained, roughly two-thirds were taken into police custody. "Violence is never legitimate," he said. "There is nothing that justifies violence."

Education Minister Edouard Geffray condemned the clashes on social media, calling the violence "unspeakable" and announcing that legal proceedings had begun. He warned that legitimizing or calling for expanded blockades endangered both students and public officials. Yet some local leaders saw the protests differently. Bally Bagayoko, the mayor of Seine-Saint-Denis, a low-income suburb of Paris and a member of the hard-left France Unbowed party, joined hundreds of students at the Lycee Paul-Eluard, led them in singing the national anthem, and called their protests "completely legitimate." He pointed out that poorer areas received fewer resources than wealthier ones.

At schools across Paris, the messaging was direct. One banner read "Fewer cops, more money." Outside the Arago school, students blocked the entrance beneath a placard reading "Macron explosion." Mael Breton, a final-year student at the Helene-Boucher school, explained the logic: "We want fewer police because we think there is a huge amount of police repression, both against high school student movements and social movements more generally. This is a real problem, especially when there is such a lack of funding here at our school and in the national education system more broadly."

Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu condemned the high school protests as irresponsible but acknowledged that the "difficulties of high schools must be heard and addressed." Jean-Luc Melenchon, a hard-left presidential candidate, seized the moment, addressing protesters in Paris and urging his supporters to mobilize against the draft budget. A Toluna Harris poll suggested that Melenchon and Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Rally, would advance to next year's presidential runoff, with Le Pen positioned as the frontrunner. The strikes and protests had arrived at a moment when the political ground was already shifting beneath the government's feet.