Unions and employers will meet on Monday to discuss pay and purchasing power as France’s draft 2027 budget heads to the Senate.
By TENGKU NOOR SHAMSIAH TENGKU ABDULLAH
Nov 6, 2026
French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has called unions and employers to talks on pay and purchasing power on Monday, 9 November, after a nationwide strike and demonstrations drew an estimated 575,000 people on Thursday, according to a provisional Interior Ministry count.
It was the highest turnout in the current series of nationwide protests by the ministry’s count, surpassing the 550,000 recorded on 17 October. Official estimates had fallen to 410,000 on 24 October and 320,000 on 31 October. The CGT union federation put participation in Thursday’s action at nearly 1.6 million.
The talks will take place at Matignon, the prime minister’s office. Lecornu asked Labour Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou to finish preliminary consultations by Sunday, while Public Accounts Minister David Amiel is holding separate talks with public sector representatives. The government has made no commitment to a wage increase.
Pay Demands Move To The Fore
The CFDT union federation called for a €100 increase in the net monthly minimum wage and higher incomes for people on modest wages and pensions. The CGT called for higher wages and pensions, more funding for public services and changes to the state and social security budgets.
The demands broaden the focus of a protest movement that gathered momentum around school conditions and university admissions. Students joined workers in Thursday’s demonstrations, while Monday’s talks will focus on wages and purchasing power.
Clashes In Paris And Lyon
In Paris, demonstrators marched from République to Nation after an administrative court rejected a challenge to restrictions on the organisers’ preferred route from Bastille to Concorde. The Interior Ministry put turnout in the capital at 65,000. Clashes broke out near Place de la Nation towards the end of the day.
In Lyon, the Rhône prefecture reported 40 injuries, including 34 among security personnel and six among participants, as well as 24 arrests and damage to five businesses. It said groups at the front of the procession repeatedly disrupted the union march.
Nationwide, the Interior Ministry’s provisional tally recorded 448 arrests and 53 injuries among police and gendarmes as of 6pm French time.
Budget Setback Complicates Talks
The strike followed a setback for Lecornu in the National Assembly. On Wednesday, deputies rejected the revenue section of the draft 2027 budget by 458 votes to zero, with two abstentions. Under Assembly rules, that meant the bill was rejected at first reading without a debate on its spending section. The government’s original bill now goes to the Senate.
The vote complicates negotiations over public sector pay, where any concessions could affect government spending.
What To Watch
Yellow vest organisers have called for further action on 6 and 7 November. A listing for Saturday names Place de la Concorde in Paris as a proposed gathering point. Police authorisation was not confirmed in the listing.
The immediate test for Lecornu is whether Monday’s meeting yields a concrete proposal on pay or purchasing power, and whether unions consider it enough to change their plans. In Parliament, attention turns to how the Senate handles the budget rejected by the lower house.
- TNS NEWS