PARIS (AP) - The famed Louvre museum in Paris has been closed after workers walked off the job to protest what they say is the increasing problem of pickpockets at work in the museum's vast galleries.

Louvre spokeswoman Sophie Grange said the museum, which normally attracts up to 30,000 visitors a day at this time of year, did not open on Wednesday. She was unable to say when the museum would reopen or provide a figure for the number of pickpocketing victims at the museum.

The Louvre claims to be the world's most visited museum, with nearly 10 million visitors last year.