SNCF strike in June threatened by four rail unions

Four major French railway unions are now threatening SNCF strike in June. They are CGT Cheminots, UNSA-Ferroviaire, SUD-Rail, and CFDT Cheminots. In a joint statement, they say they are ready to escalate the conflict. This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

The demands cover deteriorating working conditions and wage pressure. They also cover what the unions describe as the group’s growing fragmentation.

In their joint statement, the unions say relations with SNCF management have reached a major breaking point. They also accuse management of ignoring employees’ concerns.

Why unions say SNCF strike in June is possible?

Their criticism centers on internal reorganizations and job cuts. It also targets a model they say pushes each unit to follow its own rules. For example, they cite SNCF Voyageurs for passenger services. Also, they cite SNCF Réseau as the infrastructure manager.

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At the same time, they say railway workers formally belong to the same group. But in practice, working conditions and rules increasingly differ from one entity to another.

The unions also accuse management of allowing veritable “local fiefdoms” to emerge. They say those structures disregard collective agreements and national regulations. According to them, that trend is dividing the workforce. It is also creating social insecurity. And it is weakening the common rules for railway workers across the SNCF group.

SNCF fragmentation and wage negotiations

Another central grievance in the statement is competition. It is also the group’s growing fragmentation into more subsidiaries. The unions argue that this strategy is not only a social problem. They also call it an economic and industrial failure.

Meanwhile, they point to a recent report by the Finance Committee of the French Senate. They say it criticized the effects of competition in the Voyageurs sector. They add that subcontracting to SNCF Réseau had already proved problematic.

Their message is that SNCF employees are bearing the cost of a policy. They say even institutional experts reportedly see it as disruptive and costly for the public.

Wages are another core issue in the dispute. The four federations say the current international context is once again fueling inflation. It is also undermining the purchasing power of railway workers.

In addition, they are demanding the immediate resumption of high-level wage negotiations. They warn that there will be no social peace as long as management refuses to recognize the value of employees’ work and qualifications.

Three demands from the French railway unions

In the same statement, the unions set out three main demands. They also announced that they have initiated the official conciliation procedure. It is the Demande de Concertation Immédiate. It is the formal step that precedes a possible labor dispute.

Their demands are:
• a moratorium on reorganizations and job cuts;
• the application of the same rules to all railway workers across the entire group;
• the immediate resumption of wage negotiations.

Still, the four organizations say they launched this procedure with a clear intention. They want to call on railway workers to stage a mass strike. That would happen if management does not announce concrete, precise, and officially committed measures.

Separately, they are calling for mobilization across all units and regions. If no response matching the situation is delivered, they say SNCF management will bear sole responsibility. The warning covers a widespread strike across the entire company in June.

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