Tuesday Tips - How to avoid strikes in France

France = wine, food, beautiful countrysides, cheese (good cheese and the moldy kind if you like that sort of thing), Paris and the Eiffel Tower, did I already mention wine? and STRIKES.

I know I've already written once about strikes, but there's so much to say about them.
First of all, I'd like to say for the record that I understand why certain strikes occur.  They are not all bad.  But, as a person who commutes to work every day, I can tell you that it can be a little unnerving at times.

So, today I'd like to give you tips (which I try to do every Tuesday even thought it doesn't always work out that way) on how to avoid anything strike-like in France.

1.  Don't take the subway
2.  Do take the bus - in towns where buses are run by private companies (like where I live)
3.  Learn to ride a bike
4.  Don't travel by plane
5.  Don't put your kid in school, or if you have to at least don't sign your child up for lunch at the cafeteria.
6.  Get a back-up plan for random days when school is cancelled the day of.
7.  Have the website www.francegreve.com handy.  It lists all of the upcoming strikes in France.
8.  Don't move to France if you can't stand strikes.
9. Or...become one of them.  A 'strikee' or a 'strikette'.

This is Lindsay, signing out.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

A strike, again!

What a surprise, another French company is on strike.  Air France is, yet again, on strike.
The flight attendants are on strike against possible and probable job cuts.  Ok, that sucks.  But should customers have to suffer because of this?

I'm supposed to fly via Air France tomorrow.  My flight might be cancelled.  argghhh.  All I can say is, 'The French are always on strike.  All the time.  Enough already.'

This is Lindsay, signing off.

When in doubt, go on strike.

The French are big on strikes. You can always expect a big strike or two in September. The reason is, most people are back to work after summer break, the government is in full swing, and this is one of the major months out of the year when the majority of the French population depends on government infrastructures (school, post offices, trains, etc).

Last year, there was a huge public transport strike. That was really fun for me (my commute to work takes me through every form of public transport out there). Anyway, schools like the whole striking too.

As part of the plan to lower the deficit, the government has been cutting back on public employees; school staff is part of that plan, the idea being not to replace teachers who retire.

As a result, in the past couple of years the number of teachers has diminished, and schools in small towns have closed.

So French schools went on strike this week. In Paris alone, more than 25% of the staff in 420 schools out of a total of 660 went on strike on Tuesday (ouch for the kids and the moms out there). 136 of those schools were 100% on strike, and thus shut down for the day. This year, 16 000 teacher jobs were eliminated and next year the plan is to cut another 14 000. And for the first time (in a long time at any rate), private schools have joined the strike.

You know, I understand that this creates an issue, and may the force be with you. But, the striking thing is really annoying and effects parents and children more than the government. Can't they find another way to fight this?

And now I have a cranky child who doesn’t want to go to bed, but who has the chance to go to school tomorrow…

This is Lindsay, signing out before I get too carried away.