French trade unionists are threatening chaos at the Paris Olympics after dancers signed up to perform filed a strike notice just a week before the opening ceremony, citing low pay and “flagrant inequalities in treatment”.
With just a week to go until the lavish boat procession down the River Seine, tickets are available for between £700 and £2,200, with hospitality packages topping £3,000.
The figures for a ceremony that lasted less than four hours have outraged unions, who say the profits are not being shared with ordinary workers.
Many of the 3,000 dancers, acrobats and actors who will contribute to the show work for exceptionally low wages, or even for free, and a union representing the performers says hundreds of them were recruited under “disgraceful conditions”.
A spokesperson for the Syndicate of Performing Artists of France said today: “At this very moment, dress rehearsals for the ceremonies are underway and we regret to have to announce the filing of a strike notice for the show on 26 July 2024, as well as for the upcoming rehearsals for the opening ceremonies of the Paralympic Games.”
It is the latest catastrophe to confront Games organisers in the French capital, who are already facing heightened environmental and security concerns, as well as a French government standoff.
A man walks past a sign with the Paris 2024 logo in Paris, France, July 17, 2024.
A policeman stands guard on the bridge near the Eiffel Tower on July 17, 2024 in Paris, France
The union has attempted to negotiate with private companies organising the Olympic opening ceremony, highlighting “questionable practices, obvious inequalities in treatment and a lack of social dialogue during preparations for the ceremonies”.
Many show dancers were recruited “under disgraceful conditions or without pay,” the spokesman said.
This comes as other unions threaten a similar strike during the ceremony, which is expected to be attended by up to 600,000 people.
Nightly pay rates vary between the equivalent of £50 and £1400 for entertainment professionals.
Hundreds of volunteers who earn absolutely nothing will also be on duty throughout the night.
The artists’ union is part of the CGT, the General Confederation of Workers, which represents the largest number of public employees in France, and has filed a strike notice covering all Olympic and Paralympic Games.
CGT spokesperson Céline Verzeletti said: “The notice period applies to all employees in the health sector, local authorities and the State.”
Police union members are being given a bonus of up to £1,700 to try to stop them walking off the job during the Games.
The strike threat comes at a particularly difficult time for President Emmanuel Macron, who is currently relying on a caretaker government following poor results in parliamentary elections.
His prime minister, Gabriel Attal, resigned after Macron’s party lost, but the president asked that Attal stay on to help govern the country as parties squabble over power-sharing deals while trying to form a new government.
Empty seats prepared for the opening ceremony are seen along the Seine River on July 17, 2024 in Paris.
A worker is shown sitting in the stands built in the open-air stadium where the equestrian and modern pentathlon games will be held.
As event organisers enter into talks with unions to avoid strikes, French security forces began blocking off large parts of central Paris this morning ahead of the hugely complex Olympic opening ceremony.
The inaugural parade along four miles of the river prompted the closure of central riverside districts to most vehicles beginning at 5:00 a.m. (03:00 GMT).
Anyone wishing to access the maximum security “grey zone” along both banks of the Seine, such as residents or tourists with hotel reservations in the area, will need a security pass in the form of a QR code.
Many central metro stations will also be closed on Thursday until the day after the opening ceremony, when 6,000 to 7,000 athletes will sail down the Seine on a hundred barges and riverboats.
It will be the first time the Summer Olympics have been held outside the main athletics stadium, with up to 500,000 people set to watch in person from the stands, on the riverbanks and from apartments with views.
The massive security operation has left senior police officers in a cold sweat since it was announced in 2021 due to the difficulty of securing so many spectators in such a large and densely populated urban area.
Some 45,000 officers are expected to be on duty at the July 26 parade, assisted by thousands of soldiers and private security personnel.