A looming strike at Roland-Garros Airport on the French overseas island of Réunion has been called off after unions CGTR, CFDT and SAFPTR reached a wage agreement with management late on April 30. The action—initially slated to begin May 1 and continue indefinitely—threatened to disrupt baggage handling, maintenance and passenger services at the Indian-Ocean gateway that links France’s mainland carriers to Southern Africa and Asia. Under the deal, staff will receive a one-off €500 bonus and a roadmap for salary-scale talks by June 30. Strike-tracking platform StrikeTracker downgraded the alert to ‘Canceled’ at 09:15 local time on May 1, advising that operations should run normally. Airlines including Air France, French Bee and Air Austral have reinstated contingency slots but caution that minor luggage delays could occur as rosters normalise. For global-mobility teams, the cancellation removes the need to reroute technical experts and expatriate families through Mauritius. It also spares supply-chain managers costly diversions of time-sensitive pharmaceuticals that transit via Réunion to francophone Africa. Nevertheless, the episode is a reminder that France’s overseas territories share the same labour-relations volatility as the mainland; companies with staff in Mayotte, Martinique or Guadeloupe should keep local strike calendars on watch. Employers with posted workers in Réunion are advised to circulate updated travel guidance and reconfirm airport transfer arrangements, as union federations have hinted at fresh industrial action if negotiations stall next month.
Source: StrikeTracker
