They were signed during a massively followed general strike initiated after the election of the Popular Front in May 1936, which had led to the creation of a left-wing government headed by Léon Blum (SFIO).
Sometimes referred to by legal scholars as the "Magna Carta of French Labor",[1] these agreements were signed at the Hôtel Matignon, official residence of the head of the government, hence their name.
A general strike had been initiated in Le Havre on 26 May, accompanied by factory occupations to prevent lock outs, and had quickly spread to all of France.
Without having to organize strike in each factory in order to gain some advantages for them, all of the workers benefited with these agreements of: Furthermore, Blum's government deposed on 5 June five law projects, prepared by the Minister of Labour Jean-Baptiste Lebas, which were easily adopted during the month.
These laws granted: On 11 June, Maurice Thorez, national secretary of the French Communist Party (PCF), stated that "one must know how to finish a strike, at the moment that the main points have been obtained."