Once the schools break up for the Christmas holidays, French railways usually see a big rise in use as French people travel to see relatives over the holidays. READ ALSO When do the 2019 Christmas holidays begin in France? The CGT union, which is among the most hardline of the French unions, was blunt on the subject. French workers are not paid during strikes, although unions often run a cagnotte or collection pot for donations that are passed on to striking workers. On the first day of the strike action, 85.7 percent of train drivers were on strike.

Source: The Local December 13, 2019 09:10 UTC