The Louvre museum in Paris is closed today (Monday, 15 December) as employees started a strike to demand renovations and staffing increases.
The museum's website confirms the closure today, and the Guardian reports that the Louvre could face days of closures if its staff vote to continue striking.
As well as demanding urgent renovations and staffing increases, workers at the Louvre are protesting against a rise in ticket prices for most non-EU visitors.
All three trade unions at the Louvre, the CGT, Sud and CFDT, announced a rolling strike. They said: “Staff feel today like they are the last bastion before collapse.”
The Louvre is the world's most-visited museum, but it has had a difficult year. In October, jewels valued at €88m were stolen from the institution.
In addition to the robbery, a water leak in November damaged hundreds of items in the museum's Egyptian department, and a gallery of nine rooms was later closed due to ceiling safety issues.
Trade unions at Louvre announce rolling strike
Then, late last month, the Louvre announced that ticket prices would rise by 45 percent for most non-European Union visitors, as decided by the museum's board.
Via the Guardian, Christian Galani, a CGT union official representing Louvre workers, said: "We are so exasperated; this is the only way left to make ourselves heard.
"Problems have accumulated for years and the robbery has brought it all to light. There has been neglect of both building renovation and security measures to protect the collection."
The Louvre launched a major transformation project in January after the museum's director Laurence des Cars said the building was in need of an overhaul.
Visiting the institution has become a "physical ordeal", with some spaces in "very poor condition", she wrote in a leaked memo.
Images courtesy of the Louvre
