French firefighters launch six-week strike over funding

French professional firefighters began a six-week nationwide strike campaign on September 8, calling for increased funding, more personnel and stronger health protections following a summer marked by unprecedented wildfires.

At least 120,000 hectares of land burned across France this summer, the highest figure recorded since satellite imagery began being used to measure wildfires two decades ago, Caliber.Az reports, citing French media.

Four firefighters died in July, while more than 100 others were injured during the summer as they responded to fires or travelled to emergency incidents.

Against this backdrop of mounting pressure and a rising number of emergency call-outs, eight trade unions have called for more than six weeks of industrial action.

The unions are demanding additional financial and material resources, alongside a large-scale recruitment drive for professional firefighters.

"The system is not suffering from simple poisoning but from cancer," said Rémy Chabbouh, a spokesman for the SUD union. He said the situation required major intervention and called for "action commensurate with the challenges".

Despite the expected widespread participation in the strike, emergency services are unlikely to be disrupted.

France's 44,300 professional firefighters can be ordered to remain on duty by fire and rescue services or requisitioned by local state representatives to ensure the continuity of public services.

The strike comes as the government prepares to present unions with the broad outlines of a proposed civil security law, following consultations that began in mid-2024.

The talks were intended to produce an ambitious law to modernise a system that unions and officials say is under increasing strain, while providing it with additional funding. However, unions argue that the negotiations have so far failed to deliver concrete results.

The campaign is scheduled to continue until 20 October, when parliament is due to begin examining France's 2027 budget.

The unions therefore intend to maintain pressure on the government until then.

Their main demand is for "sustainable, fair and ambitious funding" for local fire and rescue services, known as SDIS. According to the Observatory of Local Public Finance and Management, their operating costs increased from €3.9 billion in 2012 to €5.2 billion in 2025.

"The strike is about funding for the SDIS, not the civil security budget," said Xavier Boy, a spokesman for the inter-union group.

He said the €880 million civil security budget covered national resources such as reinforcements, aircraft, water bombers and helicopters.

Funding for local fire and rescue services stands at around €6 billion, Boy said, with the state providing approximately €1 billion — a contribution he described as inadequate.

Several parliamentary reports have highlighted the growing challenges facing firefighters as they respond to increasing numbers of medical emergencies and natural disasters.

Professional firefighters, more than half of whom also serve in France's 200,900-strong volunteer brigade, are calling for greater emphasis on their core emergency and rescue duties.

Emergency assistance accounted for more than 4.89 million call-outs in 2025, representing 87 percent of firefighters' overall activity.

"We talk about forest fires now. Tomorrow, we'll talk about floods," said Alain Laratta, secretary general of the Avenir Secours union. He said firefighters were under pressure throughout the year because they were increasingly being asked to carry out tasks outside their remit.

The unions are planning further action in Paris on 27 and 28 September, followed by a demonstration on 29 September.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov