Macron’s decree implies a change in age required to retire, what will happen from 62 to 64 years in 2030. In addition, it will advance to 2027 the contribution requirement 43 years (and not 42 as up to now) to collect a full board. This was possible through the use of the article 49.3 of the French Constitution, which allows Congress to be bypassed on certain occasions. The government decided on this measure after the rejection of the French deputies and despite the support in the Senate.
After ten mobilizations, and the government’s lack of agreement with the unions, the protesters gathered again in the French streets to “demand the withdrawal of this unfair reform and carry the mobilization to the end, until the Government understands that there is no other way out than to withdraw the text”, according to the new leader of the General Confederation of Labor (CGT), Sophie Binet.
The mobilizations caused interruptions in the frequencies of the trains and cuts in the scheduled flights of the Marseille, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Nantes airports. The claims were also reflected in measures of force in the educational sectors, in energy companies and in waste collection.
In view of this, the government deployed 11,500 police officers throughout the country, of which 4,000 will be in Paris. The protesters reached the 570,000 people throughout France, exhibiting a decrease in the massiveness of the protests. Since the beginning of the marches, in the month of January, 111 detainees and 154 members of the security forces have been injured.
The Constitutional Council set the date for the next April 14 to validate or not the lawwhich the government defends by arguing that would avoid a future deficit in the pension fund. His opponents, however, criticize the drop in contributions and the increase in the working age, as well as consider that it punishes more women with children and those who started working very young.
Kristalina Georgieva called for “building consensus” for the reform
The owner of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Kristalina Georgievadescribed as “inevitable” a reform of the pension system in Francebut considered that “the only way for states to act is to constantly demonstrate what this type of reform can bring to each, make sure that everyone follows it, and build a consensus within society.”
Interviewed by AFP, she argued her position on the “demographic evolution” which causes “fewer people to contribute to the economy”. In this sense, he opined that “we must help and that means working longer” and that “it is always difficult to make people accept what involves sacrifices”.
“We have lived through a difficult period. The pandemic and lockdowns have affected the social fabric everywhere and rebuilding it is also a priority task,” he concluded.
Source: Ambito
