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Disneyland Paris to begin ‘phased reopening’ in July

Disneyland Paris has announced that it will begin a "phased reopening" of the theme park on July 15th, with visitor numbers limited via a new online reservation system to ensure social distancing.

Published: 22 June 2020 16:51 CEST

Disneyland Paris to begin 'phased reopening' in July

Photo: AFP

Visitors aged 11 and older will have to wear face masks, and many shows and events will remain suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, the resort said.

A first hotel at the site, which usually has some 15 million visitors per year, will open July 15th, followed by staggered openings of others through the summer.

The phased reopening will see “enhanced health and safety measures implemented for both cast members and guests,” the company said in a statement.

Same-day ticket sales will no longer be available, and people with non-dated tickets or annual passes will have to reserve spots.

The park has also suspended the “FastPass” service that lets people reserve time slots for certain rides “to allow for the necessary queue management”.

To encourage people to come despite uncertainty over how the coronavirus outbreak will unfold, the resort is allowing people to cancel or modify their Disney Hotel reservations without cost up to seven days before arrival.

Some 16,000 people work at the resort, which began halting shows and limiting the number of people inside even before France's nationwide lockdown took effect in mid-March, after some maintenance workers tested positive for Covid-19.

“We are thrilled to see one of the main tourism destinations in Europe and the largest single-site employer in France reopen to guests and its
employees,” Sophie Huberson of France's SNELAC leisure industry association said in response to Disney's announcement.

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German train strike wave to end following new labour agreement

“The German Train Drivers’ Union (GDL) and Deutsche Bahn have reached a wage agreement,” GDL said in a statement.

Further details will be announced in a press conference on Tuesday, the union said. A spokesman for Deutsche Bahn also confirmed that an agreement had been reached.

Train drivers have walked out six times since November, causing disruption for huge numbers of passengers.

The strikes have often lasted for several days and have also caused disruption to freight traffic, with the most recent walkout in mid-March.

In late January, rail traffic was paralysed for five days on the national network in one of the longest strikes in Deutsche Bahn’s history.

READ ALSO: Why are German train drivers launching more strike action?

Europe’s largest economy has faced industrial action for months as workers and management across multiple sectors wrestle over terms amid high inflation and weak business activity.

The strikes have exacerbated an already gloomy economic picture, with the German economy shrinking 0.3 percent across the whole of last year.

What we know about the new offer so far

Through the new agreement, there will be optional reduction of a work week to 36 hours at the start of 2027, 35.5 hours from 2028 and then 35 hours from 2029. For the last three stages, employees must notify their employer themselves if they wish to take advantage of the reduction steps.

However, they can also opt to work the same or more hours – up to 40 hours per week are possible in under the new “optional model”.

“One thing is clear: if you work more, you get more money,” said Deutsche Bahn spokesperson Martin Seiler. Accordingly, employees will receive 2.7 percent more pay for each additional or unchanged working hour.

According to Deutsche Bahn, other parts of the agreement included a pay increase of €420 per month in two stages, a tax and duty-free inflation adjustment bonus of €2,850 and a term of 26 months.

Growing pressure

Last year’s walkouts cost Deutsche Bahn some €200 million, according to estimates by the operator, which overall recorded a net loss for 2023 of €2.35 billion.

Germany has historically been among the countries in Europe where workers went on strike the least.

But since the end of 2022, the country has seen growing labour unrest, while real wages have fallen by four percent since the start of the war in Ukraine.

German airline Lufthansa is also locked in wage disputes with ground staff and cabin crew.

Several strikes have severely disrupted the group’s business in recent weeks and will weigh on first-quarter results, according to the group’s management.

Airport security staff have also staged several walkouts since January.

Some politicians have called for Germany to put in place rules to restrict critical infrastructure like rail transport from industrial action.

But Chancellor Olaf Scholz has rejected the calls, arguing that “the right to strike is written in the constitution… and that is a democratic right for which unions and workers have fought”.

The strikes have piled growing pressure on the coalition government between Scholz’s Social Democrats, the Greens and the pro-business FDP, which has scored dismally in recent opinion polls.

The far-right AfD has been enjoying a boost in popularity amid the unrest with elections in three key former East German states due to take place later this year.

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