Dozens of flights will be canceled at Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport this Saturday, July 2 due to a social conflict relating in particular to wages, in a context of high inflation.
On Thursday, June 30, firefighters at the first French airport went on strike to demand higher salaries. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation requested preventive flight cancellations. A portion of runways must be closed due to safety concerns. The administration warned that these cancellations would affect one flight every five, departing or arriving at CDG between 7 a.m. on Saturday and 2 p.m. on Saturday. This is due to a deterioration of one flight in six the previous day and the day prior. Orly, the other major airport in Paris, was not affected.
As part of an inter-union movement for wages, working conditions and notice runs, firefighters were joined by Groupe ADP employees, the Paris airports manager, on Friday.
According to Daniel Bertone (general secretary of CGT of Groupe ADP), new notices have been filed for the weekend. This will mark the beginning of summer school holidays.
According to CGT, workers are asking for a 6% retroactive effect on January 1, to offset inflation. Management proposed 4% on July 1. The trade unionist notes that this increase does not match the approximately 5% reduction accepted by employees in accordance with ADP's cost reduction plan in 2020-2021. Management did not confirm the CGT figures, but only acknowledged that the negotiations had failed, while the social dialogue remained open.
A strike notice was filed in Marseille-Provence from Friday to Monday at the request of an inter-union FO–CGT-CFE–CGC. However, its management didn't foresee cancellation or delay due to personnel being requisitioned through decree prefectural.
ADP encourages passengers to arrive at Ile-de-France airports "three hours before the flight" for international flights and "two hours for domestic or European flights". Olivia Gregoire, spokesperson for the government, stated that the government would "continue to talk with the unions in order to find a solution to the crisis". She said that the idea that compatriots can't go on vacation was not feasible.
Eurocontrol, the Old Continent’s air traffic control body, believes that it will return to as high as 95% of its 2019 level in August. This is before the 2020 health crisis, which saw attendance drop by three. The sector is still struggling to recover its operational efficiency following the pandemic, and there are many social unrests within both companies and at airport facilities.
