San Francisco Frontiers - 'Angry' Louvre workers' strike shuts out thousands of tourists

Employees assembled outside the state-run museum's glass pyramid, blocking the main entrance and holding up banners.

"Due to a strike, the museum won't be able to open today," read a notice for visitors posted outside, leading to celebrations from dozens of trade union members nearby.

"We won! We won!" they shouted in celebration.

The strike had broad support among staff, unions claimed, above all from reception and security staff, but also curators, researchers and documentarians in the 2,200-strong workforce.

"We're angry," Elise Muller, a security guard, told reporters. "We disagree with the way the Louvre has been managed."

The strike comes nearly two months after an embarrassing daylight heist that saw crown jewels worth $102 million stolen from the museum.

The incident has focused a fierce spotlight on the management of the world's most-visited museum and its under-fire boss, Laurence des Cars.

It has also highlighted discontent among staff, with union represenatives saying they have been warning for years about staff shortages and disrepair inside the former royal palace.

Around 400 employees voted unanimously to strike during a meeting on Monday, the CGT and CFDT unions said.

A decision on whether to continue the strike is to be taken on Wednesday -- the museum is closed on Tuesday -- threatening major disruption in the run-up to the end-of-year holidays.

- 'Disappointed' -

"I'm very disappointed, because the Louvre was the main reason for our visit in Paris, because we wanted to see the Mona Lisa," 37-year-old Minsoo Kim, who had travelled from Seoul with his wife for their honeymoon, told AFP.

He was one of hundreds of visitors who turned up in bitterly cold weather hoping to visit the museum, only to be turned away by staff.

Natalia Brown, a 28-year-old from London, said she understood "why they're doing it", but called it "unfortunate timing for us".

Rachel Adams, a 60-year-old American real estate agent, wondered how an institution which welcomed 8.7 million visitors last year struggled to find funds for maintenance and staffing.

"I think that the Louvre makes a lot of money and they should be handling their finances quite a bit better," she told AFP.

As well as the robbery, two other recent incidents have highlighted disrepair inside the building.

A water leak in November damaged hundreds of books and manuscripts in the Egyptian department, while management had to shut a gallery housing ancient Greek ceramics in October because ceiling beams above it risk giving way.

"The building is not in a good state," chief Louvre architect Francois Chatillon admitted to lawmakers last month.

- 'Obstacle course' -

A spontaneous walk-out protest by staff in June led the museum to temporarily close.

It had previously been shut during strikes and protests in 2023 against pension reforms enacted by President Emmanuel Macron.

Reception and security staff complain they are understaffed for the vast flows of visitors.

The Louvre has become a symbol of so-called "over-tourism", with the maximum 30,000 daily visitors facing what unions call an "obstacle course" of hazards, long queues, and sub-standard toilets and catering.

Macron announced a massive renovation for the museum in January, expected to cost 700 million to 800 million euros (up to $940 million).

Questions continue to swirl since the break-in over whether it was avoidable and why the national treasure appeared to be poorly protected.

Two intruders used an extendable ladder to access a gallery containing the jewels, cutting through a glass door with angle grinders in front of startled visitors before stealing eight priceless items.

S.Hall--SFF