Tens of thousands of French teachers angry with the government's Covid-19 rules took part in a one-day strike today to demand better protection for pupils and staff against infection.
Teachers, parents and school directors have struggled to deal with the pandemic and the many twists and turns on Covid rules at school.
New testing requirements announced on the eve of the return from Christmas holidays and changed twice since coalesced the anger. "We had reached such a level of exasperation, tiredness, and anger that we didn't have any other option but to organise a strike to send a strong message to the government," said Elisabeth Allain-Moreno, national secretary of the SE-UNSA teachers' union.
The exasperation was felt in protest rallies across France, at which many called for the resignation of Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer. "The (health) protocol mutates faster than the virus," one poster read at a rally in the southern city of Nice.