The mid-term February ski holiday for hundreds of thousands of Britons could be ruined after French unions voted to close lifts during school holidays.
The two main unions for seasonal and lift workers have announced an “unlimited” strike from January 31, as a dispute over pension reform brews.
Walkouts during the mid-term period would hit alpine resorts at their busiest time and could close dozens of ski resorts, The Times reported.
Eric Becker, head of the ski lifts branch of the Force Ouvrière union, said: “We have decided to call a strike during the February holidays because demands are heard more during this period”.
Courchevel ski resort (archive photo). The two main unions for seasonal workers and lifts have announced an “unlimited” strike from January 31
An elevator in Courchevel (archive photo). French unions have voted to close elevators during the February school holidays
Demonstrators gather to demonstrate against pension reform in Paris on January 19
The semester in the UK is spread over two weeks, from February 11 to 25. In France, it extends over four weeks, from February 4 to March 4.
The General Confederation of Labour, the other main union, has filed a notice of intention to strike for an indefinite period.
He called for “particularly strong action” at the Ski World Cup in Courchevel and Maribel, which runs from March 16 to March 20.
Britons who booked into French ski resorts during the planned strike are unlikely to be able to get a refund, as travel agents will technically offer the holiday as sold.
The insurance will rarely cover ski days missed due to a strike.
The start of the extended action will coincide with the day after mass protests and shutdowns against President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.
Rolling stops, mainly in the Alps and the Pyrenees, are anticipated in all resorts, rather than all lifts closed at the same time.
Pascal de Thiersant, director of the Société des 3 Vallées ski lift company, said: “After French strikes targeted ski lifts almost two years of Covid and then the energy problem, the unions want to pile it on again. It’s really shooting yourself in the foot.
Hundreds of thousands of Britons visit France during the February semester.
Sources told The Times that the strikes could “turn into a disaster” for Britain’s ski sector, which is recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.
“This is exactly what we didn’t need after so many years of disruption,” a source told the newspaper. “Sales are going very well… but what if everyone goes on strike?” This is an other story.
The Macron government continues to push ahead with pension reform, which will reach parliament at the end of March, despite widespread public disapproval.
More than a million people marched in France on January 19 as part of the national labor demonstration against Macron’s pension reform proposals and the increase in the official retirement age of 62 to 64 years old. This disrupted public transport, school and much of the country’s civil service.
Some of the strikers clashed with police, with the worst unrest taking place in Paris around the Place de la Bastille.
Protesters threw bottles, trash cans and smoke grenades at police who responded with tear gas and charged to disperse the troublemakers.
President Macron said he welcomed the “democratic protest”, but added that any riots would be met with “the full force of the law”.
The far-left CGT union said there had been more than two million people at protests across France and 400,000 in Paris alone.
More than 65 percent of the public oppose the change to the pension system.
Retirement at 64 is the lowest equal age in Europe.
Unions and the main opposition parties, which are far left and far right, say this amounts to “cruelty and brutality”.
At Christmas, the major ski resorts in Europe suffered from a lack of snow. Rising energy costs have also impacted resorts this season.
