“Black Thursday”: worried about the Olympics, police slow down the flow of passengers at the borders of Paris airports

2024-01-18 14:41:11

“We’ve been waiting here for over an hour. We’re fed up! » In the congested queue at the border crossing, at terminal 2E of Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport, a passenger lost his nerve this Thursday morning, around 9:30 a.m. Parisian women leaving for Saint-Martin follow in his footsteps. “Usually, this check takes barely 15 minutes,” they complain.

At the origin of this traffic jam at the borders, a movement of discontent from the National Police Alliance. The majority police union of peace guards called on its members at Paris airports, police and administrative, to slow down the flow of passengers at the borders, departures and arrivals from the two Paris airports as of Thursday morning. A targeted operation launched as part of the “Black Thursday” of the police, at the call of the three main organizations defending peacekeepers – Alliance, SGP Police Unit and Unsa-Police – to demand measures “ exceptional” during the period of the Olympic Games, in return for their mobilization to secure the event. Because the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, requested in December “100% mobilization” of agents during sporting events.

A special bonus requested

Among the main demands of the police unions: guarantees on summer leave rights, bonuses for all agents up to 2,000 euros and social support, in particular on childcare during this holiday period. ‘summer. “We ask that the police, who are mobilized at short notice to deal with these unprecedented obligations, be considered. Not doing so would be a losing bet. The Olympics cannot be a success without optimal security, which will be one of France’s showcases. But this security has a price,” summarizes Renaud Mazoyer, the coordinator of Paris airports at Alliance.

Terminals 1 and 2F – dedicated to connections and the Schengen zone – were also affected by this movement of discontent. The congestion at the border access points at terminal 2E arrivals was so significant – almost 3 hours of waiting around 10:30 a.m. according to the union – that the Paris Airport Group (ADP) would have been forced to open a load shedding circuit. All this, while flights were fewer this Thursday, due to bad weather and a software change at the control tower. At Orly, there was a wait of up to 1.5 hours at arrivals at terminals 3 and 4 this Thursday morning, according to Alliance. When contacted, ADP had not, at the time of writing, responded to our requests.

At terminal 4 of Orly airport, this Thursday morning, there was a wait of nearly 1.5 hours at the border crossing. DR

This is not a work-to-rule strike, according to the union, but a simple slowdown in the flow of passengers. “We have asked the police and administrators to check passports more scrupulously. No more, no less,” specifies Aurélia Mercier, Roissy manager at Alliance. “Passengers must understand that this is not a whim on our part. The police can’t take it anymore. »

The main source of concern for agents assigned to airports is the constant decline in staff numbers for several years. “How can we carry out our missions in these conditions during the Olympics? », Alarms Kevin Guyennot, union representative at Alliance Roissy. “We have just started our Black Thursday. Next time, the movement will intensify, and could cause blockages,” warns Renaud Mazoyer.