Eiffel Tower shuts down as employees strike over ticket plan

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PARIS (AP) — Eiffel Tower workers have gone on strike over the Paris monument’s new visitor access policy, which they say is responsible for inordinately long queues.

The website of the French landmark confirmed the strike Wednesday afternoon, but didn’t specify how long it would last.

Since last month, the Eiffel Tower has been allowing half of its tickets to be booked in advance for scheduled entry times. Previously, pre-booked tickets accounted for around one-fifth of the entries.

Unions that represent the tower’s some 300 employees have complained that the different ticketholders are being allocated separate elevators, saying this has created “monstrous” waiting times.

The Eiffel Tower had over six million visitors last year but has been beset by multiple strikes and security issues in recent years.

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