Louvre Closes Again as Union Negotiations Drag On

The Louvre closed on Monday due to a strike as employees’ demands for improved working conditions and pay equity continue to go unmet, marking the fourth day the Paris museum has shuttered since mid-December. The stoppage is one of the longest strikes in the history of the world’s most visited museum, a crisis intensified by the October 19 burglary and related revelations of systemic security failures.

According to Le Parisien, roughly 300 employees voted in a general assembly on Monday morning to extend the strike launched on December 15, following several fruitless negotiation sessions with the Ministry of Culture and Louvre management.

“What we need is political will to ensure that these pay gaps are compensated without delay,” said union representative Christian Galani in a statement quoted by Le Parisien, calling on French Culture Minister Rachida Dati to honor her word after publicly deeming the strikers’ demands “legitimate.” 

Valérie Baud, representative of the union CFDT, told the publication that the management of the Louvre sent on a “first draft” of proposals on working conditions on Sunday, which staff deemed “insufficient.” 

The Louvre’s roughly 2,200 employees have reportedly met every Monday since the protest began in general assemblies to decide whether to fully close the museum or partially open it to visitors. Workers staged a three-day walkout before Christmas, followed by several partial closures and delayed openings in early January. On January 5, the museum briefly reopened after a three-hour delay, though several galleries remained closed as workers later resumed strike action following a holiday pause.

Unions representing Louvre employees say staff are overworked and that the museum is understaffed and poorly maintained, prompting calls for increased hiring, higher wages, and greater investment in infrastructure. The dispute has unfolded amid heightened scrutiny of the institution following an October daytime robbery in which thieves stole crown jewels valued at more than $100 million, most of which have not been recovered.

Workers have also raised concerns about the museum’s long-term redevelopment plans, including a proposed standalone gallery for Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. Earlier this month, staff staged another walkout targeting the project, which unions described as unrealistic given the museum’s ongoing staffing shortages and maintenance issues.

In mid-January, the Louvre reported a loss of “at least one million euros” from a single two-hour delay in the museum’s opening.