Reaction to protests: France deploys 3,000 substitute teachers at short notice

In response to the ongoing school protests in France, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has announced the short-term deployment of over 3,000 substitute teachers. An action plan from Education Minister Édouard Geffray envisages the use of additional teachers in the 114 high schools where the teacher shortage is most urgent, the Prime Minister announced in the evening. As the Education Minister said in the evening news on TF1, the additional teachers should start work between this Friday and next Tuesday.

As Prime Minister Lecornu also announced, the recruitment of several hundred additional staff should make it possible to meet the needs of the schools. After the autumn break, more short-term replacements should be possible by teachers already working at the schools. The Prime Minister also promised additional money. The government will table amendments to the 2027 budget to translate certain suggestions from high school students into concrete measures, particularly in the area of ​​substitute teachers.

Government is reaching out to young people for the first time

With its announcements, the government is for the first time specifically addressing the demands of the students, who have been demonstrating for almost two weeks for better equipment in high schools, more substitute teachers and investments in the education system. Students have now also joined the protest. Further protests were announced for the coming days.

According to the Interior Ministry, 71,500 people took part in renewed demonstrations on Thursday. In Paris alone, 24,500 people took to the streets. 55,000 people across the country took part in protests and blockades directly at schools. For the most part, the demonstrations and the blockades were peaceful. Nevertheless, 504 arrests were made during protests and 48 police officers were injured.

There is outrage over the brutal police operations against the mostly underage demonstrators. Some officers are being investigated for alleged police violence.

Increasing riots

Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry reported increasing riots on the sidelines of the peaceful demonstrations. Teaching staff and schools are particularly affected. During the night, a fire was set in a high school in Poitiers, which spread to a teacher's car. In Saint-Étienne, several dozen people broke into the high school that morning and vandalized the canteen. In Toulouse, a school principal was beaten by an adult protester and in Saint-Chamond, the deputy school principal suffered facial burns from a firecracker.

The Interior Ministry also said there were numerous attacks on law enforcement and police stations. In Strasbourg, for example, a police car was set on fire and property was damaged at the police headquarters in La Rochelle, while an arson attack was carried out on a police station in Bordeaux.