An estimated 1.28 million people in France engaged in a strike against French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal to lower the retirement age to 64, according to the interior ministry.
The number indicates that the protests were among the largest in decades, surpassing the 1.27 million reported during a previous round of demonstrations against the change on January 31.
France Urges To Change Pension Age Requirement
This is a crucial period for labor and the government, as French President Emmanuel Macron expects the parliament to approve his proposal to raise the retirement age by two years to 64 by April.
In an effort to exert more pressure on legislators, France’s radical unions have announced rolling strikes that might last for days, at least in some industries, notably at TotalEnergies’ (TTEF.PA) oil refineries.
The government said that there were 10,000 more protestors overall on Tuesday compared to the previous peak of 1.27 million on January 31, and media and municipal officials reported larger crowds at rallies in certain towns, notably Marseille.
Truck drivers and garbage collectors joined the walkout as well as other industrial sectors. According to local media reports, 700,000 people marched in Paris. The police estimated the crowd to be 81,000.
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Further Protests Are Expected
Another round of protests will take place on Saturday, France’s union leaders announced on Tuesday evening as they urged Macron to reject the reform and warned that his uncompromising stance might spark an explosive situation.
Polls indicate that Macron’s proposal to have individuals work longer before they are eligible for retirement is extremely unpopular. The upcoming weeks will test the remarkable unanimity exhibited by France’s biggest labor organizations up until now.
The CFDT, France’s largest and mainly reformist labor organization, has not committed to the rolling strikes and has stated that other forms of protest are possible.
Even without CFDT participation, the CGT and FO, which are powerful in the transportation and energy sectors, would still be able to cause major disruption. The administration maintains its reform plan is necessary to prevent the pension system from going bankrupt.
Macron’s centrist alliance does not have an absolute majority in parliament, and his government may bypass the lower chamber by using special constitutional powers to enact laws something union leaders have warned him against.
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