Tens of thousands of people marched on Thursday, September 18, 2025, across France, at the call of a large inter-union, to contest the 2026 budget project and its €43.8 billion in savings. Blockades began at dawn, and processions filled the afternoon. Amid rival figures and contained incidents, the government promises dialogue, while the unions test the balance of power.
What we know
The day of September 18, 2025 brought together a large inter-union CFDT, CGT, UNSA, FO, CFE-CGC, CFTC, Solidaires, FSU around a single slogan: contest a 2026 budget project planning €43.8 billion in savings. The organizers denounce "brutal measures" and a logic of austerity. The government emphasizes the need to restore public accounts.
The inter-union set the pace for the day, with processions in most major cities, blockades began as early as 6:00 AM in Normandy, and an interministerial crisis unit monitored the evolution of gatherings at the Ministry of the Interior. In the evening, official reports were released: 309 arrests, 134 in custody, 26 police officers and gendarmes injured, 10 demonstrators injured.
A widespread mobilization, from Paris to major regional cities
The processions crisscrossed Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Toulouse, Rennes, Nantes, Caen, Rouen, Le Havre, Cherbourg, Alençon, and many others. In Paris, attendance peaked at 55,000 people according to figures recorded at the end of the day. Other examples punctuate the country: 15,000 in Marseille, 18,000 in Toulouse, 10,200 in Caen according to the prefecture. In overseas territories, Martinique experienced notable disruptions, including acts of sabotage on the water network.
As the hours passed, the pace of the marches varied: departures in late morning, peaks of attendance in early afternoon, dispersals sometimes late. The effects of the strike were felt in transport, hospitals, universities, and health businesses. However, this situation did not cause a general paralysis.
The battle of numbers
As often, the picture of participation diverges according to sources. The CGT mentions 1 million people in the streets. The ministry stops its count at 506,000. The gap fuels controversy, both nationally and locally. In Caen, for example, the prefecture counts 10,200 participants while other local estimates note a wider range. This statistical battle is not just a ritual: it serves as a compass for future episodes.
Beyond the totals, the geography of the processions indicates a diffuse but uneven anger. The metropolises provided the bulk of the troops, while medium-sized cities showed variable densities. The inter-union claims an overall success. However, the government highlights a "contained" mobilization compared to previous social movements.
Incidents, law enforcement, and official reports
Authorities reported localized incidents, before a gradual return to the end of the strike in the evening: pallet fires, occasional intrusions including one in Caen, sporadic clashes in Paris, Lyon, Rennes, Marseille. Law enforcement combined supervision of processions and dispersal of mobile groups. Additionally, there was the use of tear gas in limited areas. In the early evening, Bruno Retailleau, resigning Minister of the Interior, presented a consolidated security report, emphasizing the return to calm in most sectors.
The interministerial crisis unit monitored developments until nightfall. Authorities remind of the necessary caution when it comes to minors, some of whom were arrested during the day. On the union side, they qualify: these incidents would represent only a small part of the demonstrations.
Students, pharmacies, energy: the leading sectors
The day also took the form of sectoral actions. On the education side, student unions Union étudiante, SNES-FSU report a mobilization of 110,000 students and mention 23 high schools blocked throughout the day. Representatives of the pharmacy USPO, FSPF report 18,000 pharmacies closed, a closure presented as exceptional in scope and coordination. In the field of health, the FFMKR (physiotherapists) joined the slogans.
On the electrical grid, EDF recorded a load reduction of 4,000 MW, equivalent to four nuclear reactors. A rare signal that measures, better than a slogan, the reality of a strike when it affects strategic sectors.
What the unions contest
At the heart of the mobilization, the 2026 budget project and its €43.8 billion in savings. The inter-union considers these cuts incompatible with the state of public services and the situation of salaries. Education, hospitals, justice: grievances converge. The unions denounce a logic of austerity and demand a more ambitious fiscal justice to fund priorities. Moreover, they warn against "brutal measures" that would weaken the youngest and low-income households.
In the processions, banners mingled with slogans about purchasing power, youth, and ecological transition. Student organizations insisted on bringing the issue of education to the forefront. Additionally, they highlight already visible budgetary tensions at universities and high schools.
The position of the executive and Matignon’s room for maneuver
Facing the street, the executive emphasizes an imperative: reduce spending to preserve the country’s financial credibility. Sébastien Lecornu, Prime Minister, has opened a dialogue with the unions and intermediary bodies. The stated objective: to explain the budgetary trajectory, detail upcoming arbitrations, and identify possible accompanying measures.
In the political equation, Matignon’s room for maneuver remains narrow. While technical adjustments are possible, the overall trajectory imposing €43.8 billion in savings on the 2026 exercise constitutes the red line recalled by the executive. The first budgetary milestones outlined by François Bayrou, former Prime Minister, provide a framework, but nothing is set in stone: Parliament and the macroeconomic calendar can still influence the path.
The method remains. Will the government be able to sequence efforts, target savings, and spread measures? Upcoming social meetings will reveal whether a compromise is possible and at what political cost.
The numbers, blind spots of a broader debate
The focus on participation totals has a virtue: it takes the pulse of a moment. It also has a blind spot: the quality of signals. The decline or rise in certain cities matters just as much. Furthermore, the engagement of key sectors is crucial. Additionally, the support or indifference of part of the public opinion also matters. In Normandy, the blockades at dawn left a mark. Elsewhere, daily life absorbed the strike without major disruptions.
This day is set against a backdrop of budgetary pressures and high social expectations. It reminds us that accounting arbitrations always have a concrete translation: less frequent buses, more crowded classes, delays in justice, hospital services under pressure. It is on this tangible ground that the acceptance or rejection of upcoming reforms will be played out.
And now? Towards an end-of-strike agreement or a new social sequence?
The sequence opened on September 18 will not end there: new strike notices are being considered if signals from Matignon do not change. Consultations are announced in several ministries to detail program by program the effort required in 2026.
Three questions dominate the coming days: will the executive agree to adjust certain savings? Will the unions seek an agreement on targeted aspects such as low wages, students, hospitals? And will public opinion shift one way or the other as the first arbitrations unfold?
Key takeaways
A significant mobilization swept across the country, without general paralysis, but with key sectors in unison. The numbers remain disputed, with 1 million according to the CGT and 506,000 according to the ministry. However, incidents remained contained. Moreover, the budgetary issue remains unresolved. The coming days will reveal whether the dialogue initiated by Sébastien Lecornu can ease the tension or if a new social sequence is to be expected in the fall.