More than 10,000 tons of waste accumulated on the streets of the French capital on Friday, the 13th day of the garbage collectors’ strike against pension reform, the Paris City Hall said.
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The symbolic milestone of 10,000 tons of rubbish strewn across the sidewalks of Paris was passed on Friday afternoon.
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In turn, the prefecture of Paris warned that “the accumulation of waste, especially food, poses health risks to the population, and also serves to spread rats that carry various diseases.”
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The garbage workers’ strike began on March 7 and was supposed to last a week, but the unions announced an extension of the protest until March 20.
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The French authorities demanded that the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, ordered the forcible return of employees of state-owned cleaning companies to work. However, the socialist mayor said that “the government requires local authorities to solve the problem that it has created” and refused to comply with the demand.
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The prefect of Paris, Laurent Nunez, ordered the return of about 400 garbage collectors to work the day before, but the waste is accumulating faster than they can be taken out.
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Three incinerators on the city’s borders – at Ivry-sur-Seine, Issy-les-Moulenos and at Saint-Ouen – are still out of service.
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On the eve of French Prime Minister Elisabeth Born forcefully carried out a pension reform law without a vote in Parliament. Opposition parties put forward votes of no confidence in the government, which will be considered in the National Assembly on Monday. If they are not supported by a majority of votes, the law will be considered adopted.
