With another day of protests against the controversial pension reform, France’s trade unions have once again expressed their displeasure. However, the head of the CFDT union, Laurent Berger, announced at the beginning of the actions on the Europe 1 broadcaster that this would be “one of the last days of action” against President Emmanuel Macron’s plan.
The resistance will probably continue in a different way. “The match is over,” said Berger. The authorities expected up to 600,000 people to participate in strikes and demonstrations in various cities.
The reform to gradually raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 years has now been passed after much back and forth. It’s supposed to take hold in September. On Thursday, the opposition wants to try to reverse the increase – without much chance of success. Macron and his middle government want to prevent an impending hole in the pension fund with the reform. The deposit period for a full pension will increase faster.
The retirement age in France is currently 62 years. In fact, retirement is already starting later: those who have not paid in long enough to receive a full pension work longer. At the age of 67 there is then a pension without deduction, regardless of how long it has been paid in.
For months there had been strikes and protests, including violent ones. Today, CGT union boss Sophie Binet warned: “Nothing will be the same if he (Macron) decides to stick with this reform.”
