France's protests explained: what students and unions are demanding, who is organising and what the government has offered

France's protest movement has two strands that merged on October 17: high school students demanding better schools, and unions and Yellow Vest activists protesting about living costs and the 2027 budget, according to NBC News and Al Jazeera. This explainer sets out what each group says it wants, who is organising, and what the government has offered so far.

What the students want

• Teachers: absent teachers replaced and shortages filled. Students and unions cite difficulty recruiting in some subjects and a lack of school doctors, Euronews reports.
• Smaller classes: Union Syndicale Lycéenne president Ryad Rani told Al Jazeera that some classes had 32 to 35 pupils.
• Buildings: repairs to run-down schools that overheat in summer. A university professor told Al Jazeera that anger grew after June heatwaves exposed poor insulation.
• The school day: shorter days and longer lunch breaks, Al Jazeera reports, after placards complained of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. timetables.
• Parcoursup: more transparency in the university admissions platform (Euronews).

What the unions and Yellow Vests want

The broader movement adds the cost of living and fuel prices, which NBC News says have risen partly because of the war in Iran. Public-sector unions struck on September 29 against the 2027 budget, which includes 54 billion euros of cuts and savings and a proposed freeze on civil servants' base pay; unions say it would be the fourth annual freeze in a row, Al Jazeera reports. Unions have called further strikes and rallies for November 5, Reuters reports, as cited by The Sunday Guardian.

Who is organising

• Student unions: the Union Syndicale Lycéenne called school blockades alongside the September 29 strike while urging protesters to stay peaceful, Al Jazeera reports.
• Teachers and parents: the FSU federation, whose leader Caroline Chevé said pupils and teachers shared the same frustrations (Al Jazeera), and the SNALC union and FCPE parents' federation, which back the demands (Euronews). SNALC president Jean-Rémi Girard warned against turning the protests into a political tool.
• Yellow Vests: activist Jérôme Rodrigues called people out for October 17, the BBC reported via Outlook India. The movement has announced a "second act" for October 24, according to DPA via Yahoo News.
• Labour unions: the CGT supported a student blockade of the Louvre on October 19 without taking part, DPA reports.

France Unbowed (LFI), led by Jean-Luc Mélenchon, backs the movement but says it is not organising it and wants it non-violent, Euronews reports. The government says otherwise: Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said on October 15 that LFI was using the movement for electoral advantage, according to Outlook India.

What the government has proposed

• A five-point plan announced by Lecornu on October 4, covering class cancellations, school buildings with regional authorities, the organisation of the school day, Parcoursup and student support (Euronews). Lecornu asked ministers to come back with proposals by the end of October (Al Jazeera, Outlook India).
• 3,000 supply teachers for schools with the most urgent shortages, announced by Education Minister Edouard Geffray, costing several dozen million euros and directed to about 500 lycées, Reuters reported via Outlook India.
• Recognition with a warning: on October 14 a government spokesperson said the grievances were legitimate but were being "exploited politically and transformed into urban violence", Northeastern Global News reports.

The government has not announced changes to the 2027 budget or the pay freeze in response, in the reports read. After the October 17 riots President Emmanuel Macron said those with legitimate demands should be distinguished from those who looted, Al Jazeera reports.