The key facts

  • Education Minister Édouard Geffray urged protesters not to prevent other students from returning to classes
  • According to the education ministry, 41 high schools are blocked (about 1%), with no disruptions in 75% of departments
  • Trade unions, including the CGT, have scheduled nationwide demonstrations and a strike for November 5

Protests resumed after the holidays

The French government on Monday called on students not to block schools: student and high school organizations resumed demonstrations after a two-week holiday break, despite the package of concessions announced by the authorities last week to end the protest movement that began in mid-September. This was reported by Anadolu, citing the education minister's statement.

The education minister's position

Education Minister Édouard Geffray told France Inter that the resumption of classes is an 'absolute priority.' He acknowledged students' right to demonstrate, but stressed that protests must not prevent others from receiving an education, and warned that the ongoing unrest could jeopardize the entire school year. Blocking access to educational institutions, the minister recalled, is illegal: 'You must not stop your classmates from going to lessons.'

Scale of the blockades

According to the education ministry, 41 high schools (lycées) were blocked as of Monday morning — about 1% of schools nationwide, with no disruptions recorded in 75% of departments. Geffray noted that the blockades are concentrated mainly in the Île-de-France region, in northern France, and in Toulouse in the southwest. According to Anadolu, the BFMTV channel reported a blockade on Monday morning outside the Hélène-Boucher high school in Paris's 20th arrondissement — one of the main centers of the movement: about 20 students placed garbage bins at the entrance, blocking access to the school. Police plan to increase their presence at schools to ensure security after violence during previous demonstrations.

The November 5 strike

At the same time, French trade unions have called for nationwide demonstrations and a strike on November 5, demanding wage increases and measures against the rising cost of living. According to CGT (General Confederation of Labour) General Secretary Sophie Binet on France 2, the mobilization should involve private-sector workers, civil servants, pensioners, and young people. She said the unions are demanding wage increases in all sectors and a revision of the government's budget bill, which she called 'a catastrophe for the country.' Thus, the school protests, which the government opposes, and the upcoming trade union strike are two separate streams of mobilization that coincide in time but have different organizers and demands.