PARIS (Reuters) – More than a million people took part in demonstrations across France on Wednesday, stopping trains and reducing power generation. This was in protest against the government’s plan to lower the retirement age by two years to 64.
The government said a total of 1.12 million people took part in the demonstrations, including 80,000 at a march in Paris where police briefly clashed with some demonstrators.
President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that his pension reform plan, which has shown to be very unpopular in public opinion polls, was “fair and responsible” and must be implemented.
Protesters disagreed.
“It is salaries and pensions that must be increased, not retirement age,” read a large banner held by workers who started a protest march in Tours in western France.
Isabel, 53, a social worker, said, “If the reform is passed, we have to prepare until we can walk.”
Turnout was very high, even by French standards, surpassing the turnout at the first rally against pension reform last year in 2019.
Hardline CGT union leader Philippe Martinez said more than two million people had attended. In France, it is common for police and union estimates to differ widely. Either way, the voter turnout is a success for the union, say political analysts.
Police briefly fired tear gas around a Paris protest as masked people dressed in black and in hoodies hurled projectiles at their line. was arrested.
The government says pension reform is essential to keep the system from collapsing. The labor ministry estimates that if he cuts the retirement age by two years and extends the payment period, annual pension contributions will increase by another €17.7 billion ($19.1 billion) and the system could collapse by 2027. I have.
Unions say there are other ways to ensure the survival of the pension system, such as taxing the ultra-rich and increasing contributions from employers and wealthy pensioners.
In places such as Nice and southern France, banners reading “No Reform” were hung.
Laurent Berger, leader of the CFDT, France’s largest trade union, said: “This problem can be solved in another way through taxation. Workers do not have to bear the public sector deficit.”
Strike more?
The challenge for unions is to transform opposition to reform and anger over the cost of living crisis into mass social protests that could ultimately force governments to change course.
Union leaders are expected to announce more strikes and protests later in the evening, but said Thursday was just the beginning.
[1/24] French CRS riot police stand in the midst of clashes during a demonstration against the French government’s pension reform plans in Paris on January 19, 2023, as part of national strikes and protests in France. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
Pension reform still needs to pass parliament, and although Macron has lost an absolute majority, he hopes it will pass with the support of conservatives.
Nearly 45% of the staff at utility giant EDF have left, the company said, with train drivers, teachers and refinery workers among those who have quit their jobs. France Inter radio played music in place of its regular programming, and bus drivers and civil servants also quit their jobs.
According to SNCF’s railway operator, only one-third to one-fifth of the high-speed TGV lines are running, and few local or regional trains are running.
traffic interrupted
In Paris, traffic was severely disrupted as some metro stations were closed and few trains were running.
At the busy Gare du Nord train station, people rushed onto several still-moving trains as workers in yellow vests helped weary commuters.
Beverly Gahinet, a restaurant worker who was out of work because her train was canceled, agreed to strike even though she wasn’t on board.
But not all were so understanding.
While struggling to find the subway to get to work, Virginie Pinto, a real estate worker, said, “It’s always the same[people]who are on strike…and we have to put up with it.” ” he said.
The 2007 ban on wildcat strikes and restrictions on strikes to guarantee a minimum public service limited the union’s ability to dampen the government’s reform ambitions.
The fact that working from home is now much more commonplace, as the pandemic can also have an impact.
The strike halted ferry crossings between Dover and Calais, a major sea route for trade between Britain and the continent.
About seven in 10 primary school teachers have lost their jobs, and about the same number of high school teachers have lost their jobs, unions say, but the Ministry of Education puts a much lower figure. there is
In Paris, students blocked at least one high school in support of a strike.
EDF and grid operator RTE data show that electricity generation has fallen by about 10% of total electricity supply, and France has increased imports.
Shipment blocked by TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) French refineries, unions and company officials said the one-day strike would not disrupt refinery operations.
The impact on air traffic was mostly limited to a decline of around 20% in flights at Orly, Paris’ second largest airport.
Reported by Dominique Vidalon, Michaela Cabrera, Yiming Woo, Antony Paone, Tassilo Hummel, Forrest Crellin, Juliette Jabkhiro, Geert de Clercq, Blandine Henault of Paris, Ingrid Melander of Tours, Eric Gaillard of Cannes, Stephane Mahe of Saint-Nazaire and Marine Strauss in Brussels. By Ingrid Melander.Editing by Nick McPhee and Andrea Ricci
Our criteria: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
