About 400 employees of the Louvre, including curators and restorers, strongly supported the strike on Monday, protesting against deteriorating working conditions and insufficient funding, as reported by Euronews. This action occurred against the backdrop of an increase in tourist numbers ahead of Christmas, resulting in the world's most visited museum closing its doors for at least a day.
A representative of the CFDT union, Valérie Baud, expressed concern that working conditions at the Louvre have become "unacceptable." According to her, employees are dissatisfied due to years of staff cuts and low wages. Baud emphasized that despite the high workload and responsibility, museum workers earn less than their colleagues in the Ministry of Culture.
The situation at the Louvre has become even more tense following several incidents. In October, eight items related to the treasures of the French crown were stolen from the Apollo Gallery. Later, there was a threat of ceiling collapse in the gallery of ancient Greek ceramics, and the library experienced flooding.
Museum employees claim that staff shortages, technical problems, and the general wear and tear of the building force them to regularly limit tourist access to exhibitions. Unions have called for the creation of 200 new permanent positions to ensure the safety and convenience of visitor services.
A report from auditors of the French Court of Auditors highlighted that the Louvre building is under threat of "accelerated degradation." They recommended directing revenues from the "Louvre Abu Dhabi" brand license towards restoring the main museum rather than new projects.
Last week, French Culture Minister Rachida Dati met with Louvre employees and promised to cancel the planned reduction of state funding for the museum by 5.7 million euros in the 2026 budget proposal. However, unions believe that the proposed measures are insufficient to address the accumulated problems.
