On the second day of countrywide demonstrations against French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal to extend the length of employment before retirement, large groups of protestors and riot police engaged in violent clashes in several French towns.
In a key test for Macron’s presidency, hundreds of thousands of striking employees poured into the streets of French cities, from Paris to Marseille, to protest a change that raises the retirement age by two years to 64.
The protests began peacefully but quickly became violent in several places, with demonstrators battling with riot police officers brandishing batons and being attacked with pyrotechnics in Nantes, a city in western France.
With barely one-third of the high-speed TGV trains functioning today and the Paris metro in chaos, the union-led demonstrations today disrupted French refinery supplies, public transportation, and educational institutions.
Maintaining a strike movement at a time when rising inflation is undermining wages would be difficult for unions.
However, the energy divisions of several of France’s biggest unions have vowed to carry out “Robin Hood” operations, in which employees have turned off smart meters and distributed free power in defiance of the Macron administration.
Many demonstrators stated today that they will come to the streets as frequently as necessary to force the administration to relent, marching behind banners that said “No to the reform” or “We won’t give up.”
Bus driver Isabelle Texier said, “We won’t drive till we’re 64!” during a demonstration at Saint-Nazaire on the Atlantic coast.
It’s simple for the president. She continued: “We can’t expect roof layers to work until 64, it’s not conceivable. He sits in a chair… he can work till he’s 70, even.”
Martine Beugnetsa, a 59-year-old university professor, stated: “This is about more than pensions; it is about what type of society we want.”
Following the first countrywide strike day on January 19, when more than a million people came to the streets, unions claimed that preliminary statistics from demonstrations around the nation indicated a higher turnout.
Laurent Berger, the head of CFDT, the biggest union in France, said: “It’s better than on the 19th… it’s a genuine message given to the administration, saying we don’t want the 64 years.”
Veteran left-wing leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon hailed the demonstrations as “historic” and predicted Macron’s defeat as big masses marched around France.
Demonstrators gathered in big numbers in Paris for an afternoon march around the city, honking their horns and waving flags.
Speaking in the southern city of Marseille, Mélenchon said, “It’s not often that we witness such a huge mobilization.” It’s a kind of uprising by the populace,
To control the demonstrations, the administration sent 11,000 policemen.
Despite the fact that a sizable majority of French people reject the change, according to surveys, Macron plans to keep his ground. He said on Monday that the change was “essential” to ensuring the sustainability of the pension system.
During negotiations between Macron’s government coalition and conservative foes who are more receptive to pension reform than the left, some people felt resigned.
Strikes serve no use, it is said. In any event, this measure will be passed, according to luxury industry employee Matthieu Jacquot, 34.
According to unions, 50 percent of elementary school teachers have quit their jobs. TotalEnergies said that 55% of its morning shift employees at its refineries had put down their tools, a smaller percentage than on January 19. The amount is false, according to the extreme-left CGT union.
The challenge for unions will be to keep the strike movement moving forward at a period of rising inflation and high energy costs.
On a local level, several people declared unofficial “Robin Hood” activities. The local CGT trade union chapter turned off the electricity to many speed cameras and deactivated smart power meters in the southwest Lot-et-Garonne region.
It would be risky for the administration to ignore such a sizable opposition, according to Mylene Jacquot, secretary general of the CFDT union’s civil employees chapter.
According to projections from the Labour Ministry, the pension system change would result in an increase of 17.7 billion euros (£15.5 billion) in yearly pension payments.
The ultra wealthy should be taxed, according to unions, and employers or wealthy retirees might be asked to pay more.
The secretary general of the UNSA union representing government officials, Luc Farre, said that “this reform is unjust and cruel.”
According to statistics from utility company EDF, the strike by employees at nuclear reactors and thermal facilities reduced the French power supply by 4.5 percent, or 3 gigawatts (GW).
Despite the suspension of petroleum product deliveries from its French facilities, TotalEnergies said that customers’ demands were being addressed.
While drafting the Act, the government made various adjustments. In addition to guaranteeing a basic pension of 1,200 euros per month, the government is implementing Macron’s initial proposal to raise the retirement age to 65.
The 64-year-old cutoff point, according to Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, is “non-negotiable,” but the government is looking at measures to lessen its effects, especially on women.
A proposal asking for a referendum on the change will be discussed in parliament on Monday, according to hard-left opposition leader Jean-Luc Melenchon.
At a march in Marseille, he said, “The French are not dumb.” ‘It should be easy to persuade the public that this change is essential.’
High school and college students joined the protest as well, with a small group of them staying overnight in the main building of the renowned Sciences-Po institution.
Jean-Baptiste Bonnet, a student there, said: “It’s crucial to get young people interested in the pensions issue.”
According to a union source, protesting employees even blocked access to a jail in the city of Nimes in the southwest.
From among the main European economies, France has the lowest retirement age for receiving a state pension.
According to the administration, the adjustments are required to ensure the future funding of the pension system, which is anticipated to enter deficit in the next years.
However, detractors claim that the system is not in crisis and that pension expenditure is under control.
The administration has indicated that some of the recommended measures may be up to negotiation, but not the age restriction.
To pass the new law, Macron’s centrist partners will require the support of conservatives since they lack an absolute majority in parliament.
»French pension reforms draws massive demonstrations and police clashes«