French teachers strike

Submitted by AWL on 17 November, 2020 - 3:28 Author: Martin Thomas
French teacher with banner

School teachers in France struck on 10 November to demand better virus controls in schools.

Their demands included:

• Rota systems, with students in school half-time, to allow half-size classes

• More staff, again to facilitate smaller classes

• Better ventilation and cleaning

• Free masks. (Masks are compulsory in French schools).

Unions report a 45% turnout for the strike from junior high schools and 20% from primary. In some areas students blockaded senior high schools in the days before the strike as an act of solidarity.

On 5 November, the government tried to deflect the strike by authorising 50% rota systems for senior high schools.

The unions stress that they aim to avoid a new closure of schools, and pledge further action if the government won’t budge.

With a new lockdown from 30 October, there are (from 8 November) tentative signs of infections decreasing in France. Future battles in schools may, for now, depend on whether that decrease solidifies.

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