While a strike notice, filed by the National Union of Public Security (SNSP), began this Friday, November 15, municipal police officers denounce the government's desire to go from one to three days of waiting time in the public service in the event of sick leave.
«It’s hard to see ourselves intervening with sick agents”, declared Stéphane Poupeau, president of the national public security union (SNSP), this Friday on France Culture, while an indefinite strike notice begins today among municipal police officers.
Through the voice of the SNSP which represents them, the municipal police officers have denounced since October 29, the date of filing of the strike notice, the government's desire to increase to three, the number of waiting days in the event of sick leave in the function public to align with the private sector, against one currently. Such a situation would mean that compensation would begin on the fourth day and that downtime would be less well paid, at 90% salary, compared to 100%. “It’s a loss of around 200 euros in salary,” lamented Stéphane Poupeau.
“We have jobs where we are often first responders, we manage difficult interventions,” he recalled. “Municipal police officers must be at their maximum capacity and it is difficult to see ourselves intervening with sick officers who come to the service because they cannot afford to lose 200 euros.”
THE BEGINNING OF A LONG IRON ARM
Since the presentation of the 2025 Budget by the executive which wishes to reduce the State's public spending by 20 billion euros, the discourse between the inter-union and the State seems to have broken down. And the announcement by the Minister of the Civil Service Guillaume Kasbarian of a saving of 1.2 billion euros on sick leave only made the SNSP tense.
Indeed, the SNSP specified in a press release published at the end of October that the national and unlimited strike notice “concerns all municipal police officers, whether trainees or regulars”.
“Agents will be able to exercise this right to strike collectively or individually,” this press release also indicated. “If this measure is adopted, you will once again demotivate the 27,000 French municipal police officers, who have already had low morale for several years in the absence of a satisfactory social component,” added the union. Ulcerated, the municipal police officers want to intensify the pressure put on the government. They should take part in the December 5 strike launched this Thursday at the call of several public service union organizations.
