the movement of railway workers little followed

The feared chaos did not occur at the SNCF on Thursday, November 21, with the railway workers mobilizing little to say no to the disappearance of Fret SNCF, which must be replaced by two subsidiaries after a slimming treatment. The Inoui TGVs like Ouigo were running more or less normally, but only seven out of ten TER trains and one out of two Intercités were running compared to normal. On the RER D, one of the most affected lines in the Paris region, there were ultimately a few more trains than expected, with two trains out of five (instead of one out of three).

This half-hearted mobilization is a failure for the unions, who sought to mobilize strongly after the announcement of the dismantling of Fret SNCF at the beginning of November. They had presented this day as a « ultimatum » before a renewable strike movement from December 11, if no response is provided to their demands. “The French don’t want this strike at Christmas, we understand them, and above all there are no reasons”declared the CEO of SNCF, Jean-Pierre Farandou, Thursday on RTL.

“The moratorium is no”

The CGT-Cheminots, the UNSA-Ferroviaire, SUD-Rail and the CFDT-Cheminots are calling for a moratorium on the dismantling – without layoffs – of Fret SNCF, the leading public operator of rail freight transport in France. “The minister [délégué aux transports] said it again recently, the moratorium as such is a no”recalled Mr. Farandou, specifying that the conditions for transferring railway workers from Fret SNCF to the new subsidiaries (Hexafret and Technis) could be discussed. Two thirds of the 500 employees whose jobs were eliminated have already been relocated to other companies in the group, he also insisted.

“The national figures [de la mobilisation] are not terrible »recognized during a general meeting organized at Gare de Lyon the federal secretary of SUD-Rail, Fabien Villedieu. “I know that many colleagues do not feel concerned but no one will be protected”launched Mr. Villedieu, while an opening of the capital of Rail Logistics Europe, which brings together the freight activities of the SNCF, is planned for 2026. The SNCF will remain in the majority, however insists the management of the group.

“What is happening to freight is exactly what is happening in passenger transport, particularly on the TER”recalled Thierry Nier, of the CGT-Cheminots, on Wednesday. The inter-union is, in fact, concerned about the creation of subsidiaries by SNCF Voyageurs to respond to calls for tenders launched by the regions to operate their regional express train (TER) networks and by the State for the Intercités. In mid-December, nearly 1,200 railway workers will be transferred for the first time to three of these subsidiaries, with the result being a less advantageous organization of working time in order to gain productivity and competitiveness.

This mobilization comes the day after the obligatory annual negotiations on salaries at the SNCF. The management of the railway group proposed a 2.2% increase, significantly less than previous years marked by high inflation, but more than the inflation forecast for 2025 (+ 1.5%). A proposal qualified as ” joke “ by Fabien Villedieu during the general meeting, while “SNCF is the most profitable railway company in Europe”.

The four union federations are due to meet in the evening on Thursday to discuss the continuation of the movement.