the monument closed to the general public on the event of the centenary of the demise of Gustave Eiffel | EUROtoday

The Eiffel Tower is closed to the general public on Wednesday, December 27, resulting from a strike by its staff, introduced the Eiffel Tower Operating Company (SETE) on the monument web site. The staff of the tower selected this one-day strike, organized on the event of the 100^e anniversary of the demise of engineer Gustave Eiffel, “to denounce the current management which is leading SETE straight into the wall”stated the CGT in a press launch.

The union group denounces particularly ” A model [économique] too ambitious and untenable” because of a “undervaluation of works budgets” of the monument but also of a “overestimation of revenues based on annual attendance targets of 7.4 million visitors”either “Never before reached attendance levels”. 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 “drifts in an uncontrolled and unbearable manner for the financial balance 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”.