It's the big day in Dijon: city officials are on strike and will march this afternoon to express their discontent and their demands. The demonstration will start at 2 p.m. from Place de la Libération, where several hundred people are expected. In Burgundy, other gatherings are planned, notably in Nevers at 2 p.m. on the esplanade of the Palais Ducal, in Auxerre on the Place de l'Arquebuse at the same time, and in Sens at 10 a.m. in front of the sub-prefecture.
In Dijon, the consequences of the mobilization are already being felt: many nursery and primary schools are closed today, as are after-school reception and canteens, according to Dijon town hall. The inter-union, which met on November 14, is calling on civil servants to demonstrate for several key demands:
- Budgetary resources commensurate with the missions of public services and public policies.
- The creation of jobs wherever necessary and the tenure of contractual agents.
- An increase in the value of the index point for the year 2024 and subsequent years, accompanied by general salary measures.
- An overhaul of the index grids.
- Salary and professional equality between women and men.
- The abandonment of the guidelines of the so-called “Guerini” bill.
They also want to push the government to abandon several controversial measures:
- The three days of waiting in the civil service.
- The reduction in compensation for days of sick leave.
- Non-payment of the Individual Purchasing Power Guarantee (Gipa).
The route of the Dijon demonstration has already been specified: after leaving Place de la Libération, the demonstrators will take Rue de la Liberté, followed by Rue des Godrans, before passing through Place Grangier and going up Rue du Temple. The procession will then take the boulevards of Brosses and de la Trémouille to reach the Place de la République, then it will continue via rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau, rue Auguste Comte, rue Lamonnoye, and rue Rameau, before dispersing at Liberation Square.
Despite a sky forecast as overcast with rare opponents from 3 p.m., a strong mobilization is planned. This demonstration, a symbol of the anger of civil servants in the face of government reforms and the deterioration of working conditions, promises to be a significant moment for the city of Dijon and its surroundings.
