Unions urge teachers to strike as French school exams go ahead in up to 40C heat

Teachers in France are risking their own and students’ health in overheated schools as a severe heatwave sets new record temperatures , education unions said, urging staff to strike over “unacceptable working conditions”. Several teaching unions on Thursday issued a joint statement denouncing a “blatant lack of preparation” by the government, after teachers have had to work in classrooms where temperatures reached up to 40C. “The health of staff and pupils is being put at risk,” unions said, suggesting staff strike individually wherever and whenever they felt it necessary. Most of France is under red alert, and the heatwave is expected to reach its peak on Thursday. Authorities closed 3,500 schools considered too dangerously hot and reduced hours at a further 10,000. Children take shelter in a playground in Grabels, near Montpellier, on Tuesday. Photograph: Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images Most French school buildings – and their exposed playgrounds – were not designed for extreme temperatures. Many buildings are not properly insulated and most lack air-conditioning. Many schools were designed with large windows and no external shutters, causing classroom temperatures to soar above 30C or even 40C. In some nursery and primary schools, teachers have had to keep curtains closed and spray children with water to try to cool them. …