Eiffel Tower shut as staff goes on strike over ‘unsustainable’ management

The Eiffel Tower was shut on Wednesday after the staff managing one of the world’s prime tourist attractions went on strike, as per a report by news agency Agence France-Presse.

The General Confederation of Labour (CGT) union said the strike on the 100th anniversary of the death of engineer Gustave Eiffel, who built the tower, was to protest about “the current way it is managed”. It added that the tower’s operator, Société d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE), was “headed for disaster”.

The CGT accused SETE of managing the Eiffel Tower according to a business model that was “too ambitious and unsustainable”. Further, the management was underestimating construction costs while having an inflated estimate of future visitor numbers, said the union.

SETE apologised to visitors, advising anyone with electronic tickets for Wednesday “to check their email” for more information on their booking.

According to its website, the Eiffel Tower attracts nearly seven million visitors a year and around three-quarters of them are foreigners.

The CGT said the tower’s management was basing its future budget on 7.4 million annual visitors, although “this level has never been reached”.

During the Covid pandemic, the number of visitors dropped sharply due to closures and travel restrictions, but recovered to 5.9 million in 2022.