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The franceinfo Talk looks at Labor Day, May 1, 2024, when demonstrations are expected across the country. Ludo Pauchant receives Stéphane Sirot, historian and specialist in trade unionism, Agathe Le Berder, member of the Confederal Executive Commission of the CGT and Karel Yon, sociologist specializing in social movements.
This Wednesday May 1, 2024, France celebrates the 134th Labor Day. A participation of 100,000 to 150,000 people is expected across the country for demonstrations with a more traditional tone than in previous years.
Varied demands among the unions
On this International Workers’ Day, the CGT lists more than 265 rallies and demonstrations in France. The CGT, FSU, Solidaires and youth organizations have called on the French to come together and demonstrate “against austerity”, for employment, higher wages or even peace.
The CFDT, for its part, called on citizens to “join the processions organized throughout France, to demand a more ambitious and more protective Europe for workers”.
“Violent elements” in the processions?
Despite an announced family and “good-natured” atmosphere, security services warn of the possible presence of “detractors”, particularly in Paris. According to a note from territorial intelligence, which franceinfo was able to consult, the risks of overflows cannot be ignored. The police keep the memory of the previous year, in the tense context of pension reform. A Labor Day edition that had been “punctuated by damage (…) and virulent actions of extremist movements”.