what is the government playing at?

Since the controllers’ strike at the SNCF, the government has allowed a little music to flourish on the sanctification of strike-free days. However, at this stage, the executive does not intend to take any initiative in this matter

For a week, there has been a little music hostile to the strike as soon as a member of the government speaks. It started with Gabriel Attal: “The French know that striking is a right, but also that working is a duty”. A “and at the same time” of the Prime Minister who allowed ministers to venture into the field of regulating the right to strike.

The Minister of Labor Catherine Vautrin says “very attached to the continuity of public service” and judge “not acceptable to take the French hostage during the holidays”. His colleague from Agriculture Marc Fesneau believes that we have “need to work on minimum service”. Tuesday, the Minister of Relations with Parliament Marie Lebec does not appear hostile to the “sanctuary” of certain periods. In private, a government heavyweight is even very cash: “yes we must regulate the right to strike, he said, because the user pays a lot for the train and has the right not to be bothered during the holidays. A tone that has nothing to do with the position of the Minister of Transport. On the supervision of the right to strike, Patrice Vergriete, from the left “don’t want it to come to that.” He prefers to call on the responsibility of the strikers.

“Don’t overdo it, otherwise we will have to crack down”

A little music but nothing more. “For the moment nothing planned on the subject”, assures Matignon. No initiative to regulate the right to strike in the pipeline. Even if an advisor to the executive does not hide his “worry” as the Olympic Games approach. In any case, the Ministry of Transport was not tasked with working on this. And there were no instructions to ministers, one way or the other, regarding their speeches on this subject. “Left-wing ministers give their opinion, and right-wing ministers give their opinion,” summarizes an advisor. In fact, the government is threatening the strikers: “Don’t overdo it, otherwise we will have to crack down”.

But the question will eventually arise in Parliament since the boss of the centrists in the Senate Hervé Marseille has already tabled his bill for a system inspired by the Italian model: 60 days per year protected without strikes in transport. He will discuss it with LR because Éric Ciotti also wants to take on this popular issue in public opinion. In the Senate we imagine an examination of the text at the beginning of April, therefore quite quickly. At that point, the government will have to decide on its position: favorable or unfavorable opinion? “The ministerial declarations of recent days do not constitute the authority of the executive”, warns an advisor. It must be said that the unions have stepped up to the plate. The boss of the CGT Sophie Binet does not hesitate to summon the Vichy regime, “last government to ban the right to strike”.