Strike!

Today I had the ultimate French experience of living through a general strike. But it seems to have been a bit of a flop.

Predictions were that pretty much all public transportation would be shut down, along with schools and other services. But in Paris at least, things seem to be near normal.

I had an appointment at a government office in the far southern part of the city today related to getting my work visa. I was afraid that the only way to get there would be to walk (about four miles each way), and that having done so, I'd find the place closed.

Instead, the Metro was running normally, as were buses and trams. The office itself seemed to be unaffected as well; they called my appointment on time and seemed to be processing the paperwork efficiently. And I passed a school on my way there that was full of children.

Apparently suburban trains are more heavily affected, but even those seemed to be running a bit better than forecast last night. It helps that a lot of people decided to work from home or take a snow day. Also, the city's public share-a-bike service seems to be in heavy use today:


Other than that, there was little actual evidence of a strike. I saw no picket lines at any of the government buildings I passed, including City Hall. The only indication that something was going on was the TV monitors at the entrances to the Metro, assuring us that service was normal or near-normal despite the "mouvement sociale." (It's interesting that they chose that term rather than "greve," the French word for a strike.) And, I did see one bit of evidence of opposition to the strike:



But then, this is nothing like an American strike, where the union and the company bargain over a new contract, and if the union doesn't like the company's offer, it walks out at the last minute.

Here, it's not a question of a contract expiring. There are no negotiations. Instead, the unions announced last week that they were going to strike today to protest the economic crisis and demand, in somewhat vague terms, that the government do something about it. It basically amounts to a foot-stamping temper tantrum. (The American equivalent would be to call in to a talk radio show, I think.) Tomorrow, they will be back at work.

President Sarkozy has said he intends to marginalize the big unions so that no one notices strikes like this anymore. From my narrow vantage point, it seems like he might be succeeding.