The Eiffel Tower closed to the public on Wednesday December 27 due to a strike

The employees of the tower decided on this one-day strike, on the day of the 100th anniversary of the death of its engineer Gustave Eiffel, to denounce "the current management which is leading SETE straight into the wall", for its part specified in a press release from the CGT.

The union organization denounces in particular "a model (economic, NLDR) that is too ambitious and untenable" due to an "undervaluation of the works budgets" of the monument but also an "overvaluation of revenues based on annual attendance objectives of 7,4 million visitors", i.e. "attendance levels never before reached".

In 2022, the Eiffel Tower welcomed nearly 5,9 million visitors, according to figures from the operating company, a record since 2019 and the Covid-19 pandemic.

The union warns in particular of the significant increase in the amount of maintenance and restoration work on the monument which "is drifting in an uncontrolled and unbearable manner for the financial balances of SETE", estimating the cost of the work to be carried out at 352 million euros, i.e. “an increase of 128 million euros since 2019”.

Built in 1889 for the Paris Universal Exhibition, the Eiffel Tower quickly became a symbol of France and its capital.