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The Louvre Museum announced it would stay partially accessible to visitors on Wednesday, despite staff deciding to prolong a strike. The strike is in response to what unions call “unacceptable conditions” at the world’s most-visited museum.

The move occurs at a highly delicate time for the Paris landmark, which is still recovering from thehigh-profile jewel heist on 19 October.

Employee representatives mentioned an increasing number of issues, such as persistent lack of personnel, declining facilities, deteriorating work environments, and proposals to increase entry fees for tourists not from the European Union.

“Dear guests, the Louvre museum started a bit later this morning. Because of a strike, some areas of the Louvre Museum are closed on Wednesday, December 17,” stated the museum in a tweet around midday in Paris time.

The Ministry of Culture aimed to reduce conflicts by introducing various actions, such as canceling a scheduled €5.7 million reduction in the museum’s budget for 2026, starting focused hiring for visitor services and security personnel, and making changes to salaries.

Unions, however, claim that these promises are insufficient, and instead demand lasting assurances regarding staff numbers and pay.

Earlier in the week, approximately 400 workers had already cast their votes collectively in support of a strike.

On Monday, the museum closed its doors, leaving visitors, some of whom had traveled great distances during the hectic end-of-year season, to discover the disruption when they arrived. The museum was closed on Tuesday for its regular day off.

The continuous walkout has further undermined the museum’s management during a period of heightened attention.

Louvre director Laurence des Cars once again addressed the Senate’s culture committee on Wednesday afternoon, as legislators reviewed security issues revealed by the theft in October.

Not long after the robbery, des Carsacknowledged a “failure”during security at a Senate hearing, as she defended her record and mentioned that progress on the museum’s security master plan had been sped up.

This month, France’s Court of Auditors recommended that the Louvre reconsider its funding choices, stating that the modernization of equipment has repeatedly received less financial support than other initiatives.

An administrative inquiry initiated following the theft on 19 October concluded that the burglary was facilitated by the lack of security bars on the windows.

Removed during restoration work in 2003, they were never put back. Des Cars informed senators on Wednesday that the metal bars will be reinstalled “in the coming days.”

She also emphasized that the display cases containing the royal jewels, put in place in 2018 and 2019, were stronger than earlier models.

Des Cars also stated that the appointment of a new security coordinator was about to take place. She mentioned that the position would be filled by a seasoned security expert who would report directly to her, with the responsibility of enhancing information exchange between departments, a vulnerability consistently highlighted by investigators.

Describing the actions implemented since the theft, des Cars mentioned that security had been enhanced both inside and outside the museum.

These procedures involve new crowd management barriers along the Seine, a mobile police unit close to the Carrousel, and the scheduled installation of 100 more boundary cameras in the next few months.

Wider concerns were raised by des Cars regarding growing structural issues at the Louvre, including outdated technical facilities, the vulnerability of a location that serves as both a historic palace and a museum, uneven visitor distribution concentrated in a few galleries, and more challenging working conditions for employees.

She also supported the museum’s extensive expansion initiative, referred to as theNew Era of the Louvre,introduced earlier this year by President Emmanuel Macron.

Although the Court of Auditors has expressed significant worries regarding its funding, des Cars referred to the plan as “essential, practical, and prudent,” stating that she is committed to carrying it out.