Thousands of disappointed visitors were turned away from Paris’ famed Louvre museum on Monday.<\/p>\n
“Due to a strike, the museum won’t be able to open today,” read a notice placed outside the entrance.<\/p>\n
This prompted dozens of celebrating union members to shout: “We won! We won!”<\/p>\n
Why are Louvre workers striking?<\/p>\n
The workers’ union says that a recent high-profile heist<\/a> at France<\/a>‘s most visited museum has highlighted long-simmering reasons for employee discontent. Namely, mismanagement and a refusal to hire enough staff that a museum of the Louvre’s size requires.<\/p>\n The strike reportedly has broad support among the 2,200-strong staff of security guards, cashiers, and researchers.<\/p>\n Alongside the robbery<\/a> of $102 million (\u20ac88 million) in jewels from the Apollo Gallery, two other recent incidents made it clear how much the building has fallen into disrepair.\u00a0<\/p>\n In October, a gallery of ancient Greek ceramics had to be closed because its ceiling beams were threatening to collapse. A month\u00a0later, hundreds of books and manuscripts in the Egyptian department were badly damaged due to a water leak<\/a>.<\/p>\n The museum’s lead architect Francois Chatillon admitted in a parliamentary inquiry last month that the building “is not in good shape.”<\/p>\n Two arrested in \u20ac88 million Louvre jewel heist<\/p>\n