![]() Government spokesperson Olivier Veran told journalists Wednesday that 40% of French workers will be able to retire before 64 under the proposed regime because of exceptions for those who started work early or who have physically taxing jobs. Wooden pallets burn, as demonstrators gather during a rally called by French trade unions outside the Gare de Lyon, in Paris on January 19, 2023. “If you want the pact between generations to be fair, we must proceed with this reform,” he added.įrance spent nearly 14% of GDP on state pensions in 2018, which is more than most other countries, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Speaking to journalists in Spain on Thursday, Macron defended the changes as “fair and responsible.” It’s coming at the worst moment, in fact,” CFE-CGC union chief François Hommeril told CNN on Tuesday, pointing to the inflation that has wracked Europe this year following the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “This reform falls at a moment where there is lots of anger, lots of frustration, lots of fatigue. Thousands took part in mass demonstrations on the streets of Paris last year protesting the cost of living, and strikes by workers demanding higher pay caused fuel pumps to run dry across the country a few months ago. Nurses and ambulance drivers in the United Kingdom are also striking on Thursday over pay and working conditions. Macron’s proposed pension reforms come as workers in France, as elsewhere, are being squeezed by rising food and energy bills. (TOT) said that fuel supplies at its network of gas stations would not be affected. (TOT) walked out, interrupting deliveries of oil products. Kiran Ridley/Getty ImagesĬGT, one of France’s major confederation of trade unions, estimated that two million people took part in more than 200 protest events across the country, and said that the majority of refinery workers at TotalEnergies Train tracks lie empty at Gare de l'Est railway station in Paris as France is hit by widespread traffic disruption amid a nationwide strike against proposed pension reforms. Charles de Gaulle airport reported “a few delays” due to striking air traffic controllers, but no cancellations. Meanwhile, Eurostar canceled several services between the French capital and London, according to its website, and some flights at Orly airport were scratched. Train lines across France saw “severe disruption,” according to French rail authority SNCF, and metro lines in Paris were hit by full or partial closures, the city transport authority RATP said on Twitter. More than 40% of primary school teachers and more than one third of high school teachers went on strike, according to France’s education ministry. Teachers and transport workers were among those who did not report for work. The French government has said this is necessary to tackle a pension funding deficit, but the reforms have angered workers at a time when living costs are rising. ![]() The unions have called for another day of action on January 31 against legislation that will require French citizens to work until 64, from 62 currently, to qualify for a full state pension. The Eiffel Tower was closed to visitors.įrance’s Interior Ministry said more than a million people took to the streets across the country, including 80,000 in Paris, where small groups of demonstrators threw bottles, rocks and fireworks at riot police.Įight of the biggest unions took part in the industrial action against pension reforms unveiled by President Emmanuel Macron’s government. ![]() Protests in major French cities, including Paris, Marseille, Toulouse, Nantes and Nice, brought many transport services to a standstill. Strikes disrupted train services, flights, schools and businesses in France on Thursday as more than one million people protested against the government’s plans to raise the retirement age for most workers. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |