Paris Olympic dancers file strike petition for opening ceremony

A second cancellation date for the Paralympic Opening Ceremony was also announced

A union representing dancers who will take part in the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games has filed a strike petition for the day of the event.

The SFA-CGT union, the largest in the entertainment industry, had submitted the strike request for July 26, complaining of “blatant unequal treatment” between the artists hired for the unique ceremony on the Seine.

A second strike request for August 28, the day of the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games, has also been submitted.

It is not known what impact the strike will have on these shows, but the union says no negotiations are planned between it and the event organizer, Paname 24.

Previous negotiations on this issue at the beginning of July had been unsuccessful.

A recently planned strike by airport staff at Paris’ two largest airports was called off at the last minute after negotiations between unions and airport management resulted in all workers receiving an Olympic bonus.

Read more: Paris airport staff end strike after last-minute agreement

The largest trade union federation, the CGT (Confédération Générale du travail), has also threatened that its security staff could go on strike throughout the Games due to difficult working conditions (such as the lack of opportunity to take summer holidays).

Employees want to be adequately compensated for the increased workload and restrictions.

However, no motion to strike had been submitted by July 18.

“Dancers are not informed about their rights”

The SFA-CGT union claims that up to 300 of the dancers scheduled to perform at the opening ceremony (around 10 percent of the total) were recruited under “shameful” conditions and were not informed of their rights, including the bonuses to which they are entitled.

“Payments for recording and broadcasting performances range from 60 euros for temporary workers in the entertainment industry to 1,610 euros for employees who have benefited from successful collective bargaining,” a union member at the French media company La Dépêche is quoted as saying.

The union added that until recently certain “intermittent workers” were unable to benefit from collective agreements, but recent rule changes have made this possible.

However, the company that carries out the ceremony is said to have failed to inform the workers of this change. The company has not responded to the SFA-CGT’s allegations.

“Why are some artists who are not from Paris paid and housed, while the majority of them – those living in the most precarious conditions – do not, even though they have the same employment contracts?” the unions also ask in their strike announcement.