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Museum staff and security guards walked off the job on Monday, forcing the closing of the museum. After meeting with aides to Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand, they decided against going back to work. A union official said the meeting "did not go well." The strike was extended yesterday. Labor unions called another meeting today to vote on whether to continue the strike.

The unions fear that 400 of the 1,100 jobs at the center will be cut over the next 10 years under a government plan to pare down its payroll by not replacing retiring staff. More than 40 percent of staff at the Pompidou Centre are over the age of 50. Legal retirement age in France is 70.

According to a labor unions statement, the Pompidou is "on the verge of a financial abyss."

A “strike notice” on the center’s Web site informs patrons how to request reimbursements for tickets for entry during the strike.