Right of private sector employee to strike

The strike is a collective and concerted cessation of work in support of occupational demands.

The strike must therefore bring the 3 following conditions :

• Shutdown total of labor
• Shutdown collective of work by all striking employees
• Knowledge by the employer of professional claims (concerning pay, working conditions, defense of rights...).

To qualify as a strike, the movement must be followed by at least 2 employees.

However, an employee may strike alone within the company under the following conditions:

• Either the employee accompanies a national call to strike
• Either he's the only employee in the company.

The law does not say who can strike. The strike may be initiated by a trade union, an employee representing staff or not.

Any employee may strike. You don't have to be a union or a staff representative to go on strike.

NoHowever, the employee does not have to inform his employer of his intention to strike.

It is up to the employer to ascertain the employee's absence on the day of the strike and to ask him the reasons for his absence. The employee may, however, notify his employer of his absence if he so wishes.

In the private sector, a strike may be called at any time.

Employees who want to use their right to strike do not have to give notice.

A strike is possible even if it has not been preceded by a warning or an attempt at conciliation with the employer. The employer must, however, be aware of the employees' occupational demands at the time the strike was called. No formalities are provided for the presentation of claims (oral or written transmission).

Employees are not obliged to wait for their employer's negative response before starting the strike.

One agreement or collective agreement may not restrict or regulate the exercise of the right to strike.

An employee cannot be punished or dismissed for having gone on strike. Nor can he be discriminated against (for example in terms of salary increases).

However, in the case of gross negligence of the employee (including personal and active participation in illegal acts), the employee may be dismissed.

It does not exist no minimum or maximum legal duration.

The strike may be short-lived (1 hour or less) or may continue for a long period (several days or weeks).

It can be repeated.

The strike suspend the contract of employment, but does not break it.

The employer shall deduct from the employee's pay a share of the salary and any incidentals (travel allowance, for example).

Withholding from pay must be proportional the duration of the work stoppage. Any upper restraint is prohibited.

NoHowever, the strike is not a circumstance in which the hours lost as a result of the strike can be recovered.

Strikers must respect the work of non-strikers. They cannot prevent them from working (for example, occupying premises may, depending on the circumstances, be an abusive act).