Eiffel Tower closed as staff go on strike

PARIS

The Eiffel Tower, one of the world's top tourist attractions, was closed on Dec. 27 after staff went on strike, the landmark's operator said.

The one-day stoppage on the 100th anniversary of the death of engineer Gustave Eiffel, who built the tower, was to protest against "the current way it is managed," the hard-left CGT union said in a statement.

The tower's operator SETE was "headed for disaster," it said.

The CGT said management was running the Eiffel Tower according to a business model that was "too ambitious and unsustainable" and that it said was based on an inflated estimate of future visitor numbers, while under-estimating construction costs.

SETE apologized to visitors, advising anyone with electronic tickets for Dec. 27 "to check their email" for more information on their booking.

The CGT said the tower's management was basing its future budget on 7.4 million annual visitors, although "this level has never been reached."

Stephane Dieu, a CGT union rep at the Eiffel Tower, told AFP that the monument was not sufficiently funded to pay for "very large maintenance work" that was needed.

"The Eiffel Tower is old, it's an old lady of 130 years," he said. "We have lifts here that were built in 1899."

Unless a financial deal could be made with the city of Paris, "we will run out of cash in 2025, despite our visitor numbers."