Several hundred trade and service workers demonstrated at the end of the day on Monday April 15 in Paris at the call of the CGT to denounce violations of labor rights in their sector during the Olympic Games (OG).
“Employees are asked to give up their summer vacation without even a salary compensation, (…) we ask provincial employees (…) to come and strengthen the workforce in the Paris region without even providing them with decent housing, employees are asked to work on Sundays from June to September, (…) a much longer duration than the Olympic Games”listed the general secretary of the CGT, Sophie Binet, in front of the demonstrators, concluding with: “The CGT will not let this happen. »
“We defend our rights, we defend the Olympics and we do not have to give up our rights in the name of the Olympics”she continued, asking the government to include in its social agenda a « table ronde » on the organization of the Games as quickly as possible.
Red vests on their backs and whistles in their mouths, security guards, catering, hotel and mass distribution employees left the Opéra Garnier shortly after 6 p.m. for the town hall, the watchword “no social regression during the Olympics” chanted into the microphone.
It will be “social fire” if “the flame of the Olympics burns the labor code”
Brandishing torches symbolizing the Olympic flame, they paraded behind a banner promising “the social fire” and “the flame of the Olympics burns the labor code”. The general secretary of the CGT-Commerce and Services, Amar Lagha, counted at least 1,500 demonstrators. “Employees don’t want to be the backers of the Olympics”declared Laurent Degousée, of the SUD union, who came to support the CGT for what he considers to be a « premier round ».
Employees of the Carrefour brand, “premium” sponsor of Paris 2024, were particularly well represented. Laurent Lamaury, CGT union delegate at Carrefour Market, fears “the questioning of voluntary work on Sundays, the deregulation of hours, understaffing”.
Several hundred people gathered on January 17 for a similar reason in front of the headquarters of the Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
