On Tuesday morning, more than 30 companies in the Ile-de-France region witnessed a coordinated strike by hundreds of undocumented workers, condemning their alleged overexploitation and demanding their regularization.
Approximately 500 individuals, primarily of African origin, took part in this action, occupying 33 companies in various sectors such as construction, logistics, cleaning, and distribution, primarily in Paris and Seine-Saint-Denis.
Notably, 34 of these workers entered the headquarters of a temporary employment agency in Saint-Denis, near the Stade de France.
They were employed in roles such as garbage collection and construction work, especially for projects related to the Olympic Games and Greater Paris.
Accompanied by union activists, they displayed a banner from the CGT (General Confederation of Labor) and pledged to remain on the premises until their regularization is achieved.
The majority of the striking workers are employed as temporary laborers for subcontractors, working on behalf of major companies like Veolia, Chronopost, and Carrefour. The CGT, which is supporting their action, has accused these companies of masking the overexploitation of these undocumented immigrants.
“We are on strike in our companies to win our regularization and our rights,” assure those concerned in this text.
“We want to make things happen,” explained Mamadou Kébé, who obtained his regularization after a year of strike between October 2008 and 2009.
“These workers must be able to enjoy the rights for which they contribute and pay taxes,” judged the man who now leads the immigration collective of the CGT 93.
Every year, between 7,000 and 10,000 workers are regularized. For the CGT, who pegs this workforce’s size at a few hundred thousand individuals, this number is insufficient.
According to the union’s press release, immigrants make up “40 to 62% of workers in the home help, construction, hotel and catering, cleaning, security, and agri-food sectors” in Ile-de-France.