French public-sector workers strike over pay and frozen index point

On 5 November 2026, public-sector workers in France took part in a strike day over pay. Unions called the action to protest the freeze of the "point d'indice", the index point used to calculate civil servants' salaries, which has not risen in line with the cost of living.

According to the figures reported for the day, more than 10% of state civil servants stopped work. Participation was lower in the other two branches of the public service: 6.10% among local-authority staff and 4.97% among hospital staff.

The unions' central complaint was that frozen pay erodes the purchasing power of millions of public employees, including teachers, nurses, and local-government workers. They demanded that the index point be unfrozen and that salaries be adjusted. The turnout figures, while modest in some sectors, gave unions a basis to press the government for talks and to plan further action, which led to the new strike call for 17 November.