Sud Rail, a French railway workers' union, has announced a planned strike at SNCF, the national rail company, on Tuesday, September 29. The decision comes amid growing concerns over deteriorating working conditions, worsened by a recent heatwave that affected rail operations across the country. The union is pushing for concrete responses from SNCF, particularly around salary increases, as the company reported substantial profits of 1.2 billion euros during the first half of 2020. In a leaflet, Sud Rail emphasized that employees are physically and emotionally drained after the summer and expressed skepticism about a recent thank-you letter from Jean Castex, the newly appointed SNCF president. Following a major strike on June 10, which saw widespread disruption to rail services, Castex announced a series of changes aimed at addressing union concerns. These included delaying the forced separation of SNCF, a move that had been seen as a step toward privatization, and appointing a new leadership team after the controversial dismissal of Christophe Fanichet, whose management approach had faced strong opposition from unions. In an effort to ease tensions, SNCF also announced a 100-euro bonus for employees and the hiring of 350 additional staff this year, in addition to 6,000 already planned, with the goal of restoring a sense of stability and ensuring staff support for the company's ongoing reforms. Despite these measures, Sud Rail remains unsatisfied, arguing that they do not address the core issues. The union is calling for a complete halt to the process of separating SNCF, any internal reorganizations, and a renewed focus on wages in future negotiations. However, the CGT Cheminots, another major rail union, has not yet joined Sud Rail in its strike call. It is expected to make a decision by Thursday, which could influence the scale of the strike and its impact on train services. The date of the strike, September 29, was chosen strategically. It coincides with a broader call for strikes across the public sector and marks the beginning of parliamentary discussions on the 2027 budget. This timing may amplify the pressure on the government and SNCF to address the workers' demands, as the strike could disrupt rail services during a critical period of political and economic planning.