Paris (AFP) After a three-day nationwide strike early in the year, the union hopes to secure mass participation from January 19, when more than one million people protested the plan.
Delphine Maisonneuve, a 43-year-old nurse, told Reuters news agency: “If you can’t hear what’s going on in the street and you can’t understand what’s going on with people, at some point there will be an explosion. It shouldn’t be surprising,” he said. Protests have begun in Paris.
The French have spent more years in retirement than any OECD country, and polls show that the majority are reluctant to retire.
President Emmanuel Macron has said the reform is “essential” to ensure the viability of the pension system. Early estimates put Paris’ population up about 20% since the last protests on Tuesday, according to Le Figaro newspaper.
Trade unions hope to draw large crowds in the first weekend of protests since the movement began, drawing people of all ages and backgrounds to show the government that their anger over the reforms runs deep. rice field.
French closure
In a joint statement ahead of Saturday’s demonstrations, all major unions called on the government to overturn the law.
They have warned that if their demands are not met they will try to suspend France from March 7. A strike is already planned for him in February. 16
“If the government remains deaf, the unions will demand the closure of France,” they said ahead of Saturday’s demonstrations.
The protests are the first of the weekend when workers don’t have to go on strike or take vacations.
You are following the first week of pension bill debates in Congress.
Opposition parties have proposed thousands of amendments, complicating the debate and ultimately trying to force the government to pass the law by decree without a parliamentary vote, a move that could jeopardize Macron’s remaining powers.
Raising his retirement age by two years and extending his contribution period would add an additional €17.7 billion ($19.18 billion) to annual pension contributions, pushing the system into bankruptcy by 2027, according to the Labor Department.
Unions say there are other ways to do this. For example, taxing the ultra-rich or asking employers and wealthy pensioners to donate more.
“It is important to pay attention not only to our society, even if it is less affected [by pension reforms] at my age, but to a cohesive society where people are very close to each other and cautious. It’s not just about people, but also taking care of children,” said Kamel Amriu, 65, a retired graphic designer.
