• On January 19, René Revol (LFI), mayor of Grabels, made no deductions from the salaries of his striking municipal employees.

  • This Tuesday, he is not renewing the operation, but he has decided to participate in a strike fund, with his personal money, to support the striking agents.

  • "It amounts to the same, but we pay, this time, as elected officials, with our personal money", confides René Revol to

    20 Minutes

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On January 19, during the first day of mobilization against the pension reform, René Revol (LFI) had made no deductions from the salaries of his striking agents.

This Tuesday, for this new day of protest, the mayor of Grabels (Hérault), a village of 8,800 inhabitants, west of Montpellier, did not renew this initiative, but he decided to participate, personally, in a strike fund for its municipal employees.

The chosen one answers questions from

20 Minutes

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What is in place, this Tuesday, in Grabels, for this new day of mobilization against the pension reform?

A strike fund.

Please note, I did not set it up.

It is opened by the trade union representatives of the Territorial Social Committee (CST) of the town hall of Grabels, elected by the agents.

And it is an independent civil service union that will carry it.

We, the elected representatives of the municipal majority, contribute to this fund.

Everyone does according to their possibilities.

Me, for example, I decided to pour there the totality of my allowance of mayor of the month of February.

This represents 1,206 euros.

It's not Peru.

But, that's it already.

Residents have asked me if they could also participate.

Yes it's possible.

This sum will be collected, and will make it possible to pay a contribution to each striker, when he presents his payslip mentioning the deduction.

It's not so common, a strike fund, today...

There are still big unions, like those of the dockers, which have strike funds.

But, in France, it is not widespread today.

Whereas in Germany, for example, steelworkers [metal workers] have six months' wages ahead of them, if they wish!

Obviously, the discussion is immediately different with the bosses…

The deduction from wages in the event of a strike is a brake, for the agents?

The technique of the government is that the strikers are exhausted.

When food expenses explode, when real estate prices are at their highest in Montpellier… A strike is enough for them to end the month eating potatoes… We have to help them.

Why did you want to personally support this fundraiser?

Because I am outraged that we want to employ certain municipal staff that I know very well for two more years.

The Atsem, who work with children, in kindergartens, for example.

Some are in their fifties, their backs are already broken from bending down to children's height.

And they are told, “No, it's not hard work”.

And the green space agents, who work outdoors all year round?

Some, after forty years, are completely broken.

And we tell them “No, we have to wait two more years”!

On January 19, you had not made any deductions from the salaries of the strikers, why not have renewed this initiative?

For the first day, we want to mark with a symbolic act our solidarity with the strikers.

I saw that since then we have been followed by other municipalities.

OUR REPORT ON PENSION REFORM

Was it a legal process?

I do not know.

I had the jurisprudence studied, and that had never happened.

Obviously the government does not want to add fuel to the fire, so I was left alone.

For this second day of mobilization, it amounts to the same, but we pay, this time, as elected officials, with our personal money.

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  • Strike