Martigues Hospital Faces Critical Crossroads as Staff Strike Amidst Funding Concerns
Marseille, France – October 2, 2025 – Healthcare workers are striking today at 10:30 a.m. on the old port of Marseille, escalating a months-long fight for increased funding and staffing at the Martigues hospital. The action comes as the hospital, serving a critical territorial network, grapples with saturation, staff fatigue, and the risks posed by unreplaced departures – all within a French public hospital system strained by budgetary pressures.
The situation has been building as the beginning of 2025, with local unions issuing alerts and staging mobilizations. In January, the CGT union mobilized sixty staff members outside the Istres sub-prefecture, demanding 90 full-time positions, immediate statutory adjustments, and €170 million in investment. A subsequent round table discussion on January 28th, involving elected officials, the sub-prefecture, and hospital representatives, underscored the urgency, with the union collective stating, “the hospital is saturated.”
This local struggle mirrors broader tensions within the French healthcare system, where public hospitals frequently strike for increased resources to keep pace with inflation. The CGT health Social Action has already filed a national strike notice covering September 26th to October 2nd, further highlighting the widespread discontent.
Currently, a major reorganization project is under review, slated to be presented to the Agence Régionale de Santé (ARS) next month. The plan aims to rehabilitate and expand the hospital,improve workflows,and enhance ergonomics without exacerbating existing debt. The stakes are high: hospital leaders and union representatives agree that failure to adapt could jeopardize access to care for the local population,forcing patients to travel further or rely on already overburdened facilities.
Unions are demanding concrete commitments before the end of 2025, citing the urgent need for action. They point to the hospital’s 50th anniversary as a moment for decisive investment, not merely celebration.
The proposed revitalization project carries a budget of €60 million, in addition to €28 million already allocated to the Rayettes hospital through the 2021 Segur de la Santé (Health Security Investment Plan).Work on the Vallons site, focused on geriatric care, is nearing completion. However, concerns remain regarding the hospital’s long-term financial stability and its capacity to modernize through renovations, new equipment, and digitalization.
The future of Martigues Hospital hangs in the balance, representing a critical test case for the sustainability of public healthcare access in the region.