There is still a chance that the 2023 Paris Olympics opening ceremony may be disrupted because talks to remove the 700 dancers’ strike threat failed to come to a consensus on Tuesday.
The SFA-CGT union filed a strike warning last week due to what it called “outrageous disparities” in compensation among dancers. The union claims to represent about 10% of the 3,000 artists participating in the opening ceremony.
The union and the organizing committee of the games met on Tuesday, and the offer of an additional 120 euros ($130) for the lowest-paid performers was turned down.
The union published a statement to AFP stating, “This Tuesday, a timid proposal was finally made to us, related to an increase in pay for broadcasting rights.”
The danger of a strike is an undesirable development for French organizers and might worsen France’s already negative reputation for labor issues, especially with the world’s attention focused on Paris this Friday, July 26, 2024, when the games begin.
Many public sector employees in France have stopped working ahead of the Olympics or threatened to go on strike in order to obtain bonuses for working during the July 26–August 11 event, which falls during the summer vacation.
Up to 1,900 euros in one-time compensation have been agreed upon for Parisian police and municipal employees.
Sophie Binet, the leader of the once Communist-aligned CGT, asked Paname 2024, the firm creating the opening ceremony, to come to a swift deal to put an end to the strike threat.
During Monday’s practices beside the Seine, a few dancers demonstrated their disapproval by pausing and raising their fists for eight minutes.
The opening ceremony is scheduled to occur on a four-mile (6 km) stretch of the Seine River. It is anticipated that between 6,000 and 7,000 athletes would sail 85 boats down the river.
It will be the first time that the main athletics stadium has not opened for an Olympics in the summer.
A minor union at ADP, the operator of the Paris airport, has also issued a notice of strike for Friday.
The company’s management and the majority of labor unions came to an agreement last week to resolve a disagreement on Olympic incentives.
