While the municipality intends to increase the number of agents to 800 by 2026, disparities in remuneration are sowing discord in the ranks of municipal police officers. A demonstration in front of city hall even degenerated.
The image got people talking: around fifty municipal police officers forcibly entering the city hall of the Marseille city, all sprinkled with insults aimed at the mayor of Marseille, Benoît Payan. The facts, perpetrated on November 21 during a demonstration bringing together 200 people and at the initiative of trade union organizations, motivated the municipality to file a complaint against “degradations”.
“The City noted degradations and unacceptable behavior on the part of some demonstrators, incompatible with their status as municipal police officers dedicated on a daily basis to respecting public peace”explains the Marseille town hall, which deplores that the mobilization did not take place “peacefully”. “If the responsibility of certain agents was proven, disciplinary sanctions could be initiated”she indicates
Elements which reinforce the climate of mistrust which has gradually established between the municipality and its municipal police officers. “How do you expect the police to come to our community if the town hall files a complaint against their staff?”quips ironically to the Figaro Ludovic Bedrossian, president of the CFTC for the city of Marseille and head of department within the municipal police. “I don’t know what was going on in the administration’s mind. We want to retain agents and prevent some from leaving Marseille. They are not going to get there by creating disparities”whispers the unionist.
800 agents by 2026
Last June, the institution's 580 agents discovered that they would no longer be in the same boat from 1is January 2025 following the publication of a decree relating to the special function and commitment allowance. The adoption and application of this decree by the city of Marseille should lead to salary disparities between agents working during the day and those who work night hours or work in special brigades.
“Until now, we were all paid on the same basis. There is a desire on the part of the administration to divide the brigades. This is a first in 50 years”plagues Ludovic Bedrossian, evoking meetings between union representatives and town hall officials who did not “nothing given”. “We asked for the maximum so that all the agents could get by financially. They told us that they maintained their position”he curses.
“Some agents feel abandoned, and it is true that there is a certain suffering”confirms Christophe-Martin Chalamel, deputy departmental secretary within the CFDT Marseille. “Following this mobilization, the town hall was cooled and stopped certain negotiations. This escalation is not profitable for anyone. We must find reason and renew the dialogue”pleads the trade unionist, who was not present during the mobilization of November 21.
The municipal police had never attempted to force entry into the town hall, this is unheard of
Bruno Gilles, member of the right-wing municipal opposition group Une Volonté pour Marseille (UVPM)
Difficulties which undermine the town hall's plan aimed at significantly increasing the number of agents by the municipal deadline. In 2020, the town hall had 422 agents and promised to double its workforce at the end of Benoît Payan's mandate. As of October 15, 2024, 151 new police officers had joined this pool, bringing their number to 573. “We are in a battle of numbers, which shows that the town hall is lying. These lies have an impact on the state of mind of the municipal police. tackle Bruno Gilles, member of the municipal opposition group Une Volonté pour Marseille (UVPM), classified on the right.
“They wanted to create several clans within the municipal police, between those who work at night, on the roads, on horseback. The municipal police had never attempted to force entry into the town hall, this is unheard of.”continues the elected official, criticizing the majority of Benoît Payan. “This filing of complaint is there to show that we want to break this strike movement and that the municipal police officers must be under the orders of the politician, which has never been done Jean-Claude Gaudin »he insists.
