Unions Stage Protests Against Plans for Retirement Age Hike-France
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Unions stage protests against plans for retirement age hike AFP - French labour unions staged a day of strikes and street rallies on Thursday to protest against President Nicolas Sarkozy's plan to raise the retirement age beyond 60 years. Opinion polls show most voters oppose the reform and by midday tens of thousands of marchers had gathered in several cities, but there were mixed reports about participation in strike action. Teaching unions announced that 40 percent of primary and secondary school teachers had gone on strike, whereas the education ministry put the figure at just over 12 percent. Public transport was only mildly disrupted nationwide, with three quarters of regional trains and all high-speed TGV services running as normal and only very minor delays for some Paris commuters. Nevertheless, a strike by air traffic controllers in support of the protest saw 30 percent of flights from Paris Orly airport cancelled and 10 percent from Charles de Gaulle, the environment ministry said. "What happens today will be fairly decisive for how things develop," said Bernard Thibault, leader of the CGT, the largest of the broad coalition of trade unions organising the national protest. "I'd like to see us exceed the mobilisation we achieved on March 23," he told Europe 1 radio, referring to France's last large-scale labour protest, when unions estimated turnout at 800,000 and the police at 350,000. If the unions fail to mobilise a similar number this week, it will be seen as a victory for the government, but labour and opposition leaders said they were confident of a big turnout. The postal service said that 12.58 percent of staff were on strike, slightly more than the 11.45 percent who walked out on March 23. Polls published Thursday in two newspapers, Le Parisien and L'Humanite, found t hat around two thirds of French voters were prepared to join one of the dozens of rallies being organised around the country. This appears to reflect growing opposition t o Sarkozy's plan, which the government only confirmed this week. Print Twitter Yahoo! Buzz Delicious Comment LATEST UPDATE: 27/05/2010 - FRANCE - FRENCH ECONOMY - RETIREMENT - STRIKE Tens of thousands of marchers gathered Thursday in several French cities after labour unions called for a day of strikes and protests against a government plan to raise the legal retirement age to help curb the country's mounting public deficit. By News Wires (text) Carla WESTERHEIDE / Nicolas RANSOM (video) Watch : FRANCE 24 live : THE DEBATE Next : THE NEWS ENGLISH FRANÇAIS Watch France 24 LIVE NEWS BUSI NESS WEATHER Nigeria's permanent oil slick MOST READ MOST COMMENTED WORLD CUP French squad quit training session over Anelka eviction WORLD CUP France's Anelka thrown off team after insulting coach WORLD CUP Nicolas Anelka: French football ’ s 'enfant terrible' WORLD CUP France laments ‘ shameful ’ World Cup performance WORLD CUP 2010 The problem with 'les Bleus' TOP STORIES FRANCE AFRI CA MI DDLE E AST EUROPE AMERI CAS ASIA & THE P ACI FIC OBSERVERS BUSI NESS / TECH WORLD CUP CULTURE HEALTH EARTH REPORTAGES TV SHOWS WEATHER Search the website To take advantage of all the features on FRANCE24.COM, please click here to download the latest version of Flash Player.
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Unions stage protests against plans for retirement age hike
AFP - French labour unions staged a day of strikes and street rallies on Thursday to protest against
President Nicolas Sarkozy's plan to raise the retirement age beyond 60 years.
Opinion polls show most voters oppose the reform and by midday tens of thousands of marchers
had gathered in several cities, but there were mixed reports about participation in strike action.
Teaching unions announced that 40 percent of primary and secondary school teachers had gone on
strike, whereas the education ministry put the figure at just over 12 percent.
Public transport was only mildly disrupted nationwide, with three quarters of regional trains and all
high-speed TGV services running as normal and only very minor delays for some Paris commuters.
Nevertheless, a strike by air traffic controllers in support of the protest saw 30 percent of flights from
Paris Orly airport cancelled and 10 percent from Charles de Gaulle, the environment ministry said.
"What happens today will be fairly decisive for how things develop," said Bernard Thibault, leader of
the CGT, the largest of the broad coalition of trade unions organising the national protest.
"I'd like to see us exceed the mobilisation we achieved on March 23," he told Europe 1 radio,
referring to France's last large-scale labour protest, when unions estimated turnout at 800,000 and
the police at 350,000.
If the unions fail to mobilise a similar number this week, it will be seen as a victory for the
government, but labour and opposition leaders said they were confident of a big turnout.
The postal service said that 12.58 percent of staff were on strike, slightly more than the 11.45
percent who walked out on March 23.
Polls published Thursday in two newspapers, Le Parisien and L'Humanite, found that around two
thirds of French voters were prepared to join one of the dozens of rallies being organised around the
country.
This appears to reflect growing opposition to Sarkozy's plan, which the government only confirmed
this week.
Print Twitter Yahoo! Buzz Delicious Comment
LATEST UPDATE: 27/05/2010 - FRANCE - FRENCH ECONOMY - RETIREMENT - STRIKE
Tens of thousands of marchers
gathered Thursday in several French
cities after labour unions called for a
day of strikes and protests against a
government plan to raise the legal
retirement age to help curb the
country's mounting public deficit.
By News Wires (text)
Carla WESTERHEIDE / Nicolas
RANSOM (video)
Watch : FRANCE 24 live : THE DEBATE
Next : THE NEWS
ENGLISH FRANÇAIS
Watch France 24
LIVE N EW S B US IN ESS WEATHER
Nigeria's permanent oil slick
MOST READ MOST COMMENTED
WORLD CUP
French squad quit training session
over Anelka eviction
WORLD CUP
France's Anelka thrown off team after
insulting coach
WORLD CUP
Nicolas Anelka: French
football’s 'enfant terrible'
WORLD CUP
France laments ‘shameful’ World Cup
performance
WORLD CUP 2010
The problem with 'les Bleus'
TOP STORIES FRANCE AFRICA MIDDLE EAST EUROPE AMERICAS ASIA & THE PACIFIC OBSERVERS
BUSINESS / TECH WORLD CUP CULTURE HEALTH EARTH REPORTAGES TV SHOWS WEATHER Search the website
To take advantage of all the features on
FRANCE24.COM, please click here todownload the latest version of Flash Player.
8/9/2019 Unions Stage Protests Against Plans for Retirement Age Hike-France
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A previous poll conducted this month by CSA/CECOP showed a narrow majority accept the change
is inevitable, whereas a later survey found a similarly narrow majority think it unnecessary.
In common with much of Europe, France is grappling with a huge public deficit, and the government
argues that reforming pension rules and delaying the minimum reti rement age will help control
mounting debt.
Many of France's neighbours have announced harsh spending cuts but Sarkozy, who is suffering
record unpopularity and faces a re-election fight in two years, has been cautious, refusing to speak
of an austerity programme.
Nevertheless, this week ministers confirmed what had long been suspected: that he plans to abolishretirement at 60, a cherished symbol for the French left of its victories under late president Francois
Mitterrand.
French retirees receive 85 percent of their pension payments from state schemes, compared to an
average of 61 percent among member states of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD).
Although 60 is the theoretical minimum age for retirement on a full state pension, various special
schemes exist in the public sector for those with jobs perceived as tough or those who started in
work in their teens.
On average French men retire at 58.7 years and women at 59.5, compared to an OECD average of
63.5 and 62.3, according to the body.
"It's a demographic problem. France is behind Malta as the country where we work the least," Budget
Minister Francois Baroin told i-Tele.
Pensions account for the bulk of the social security budget, which can no longer in itself cover
payments, with the excess being covered by state borrowing, forcing up France's public deficit.
According to the French government's panel studying pension finance, the shortfall between pension
contributions and spending was 10.9 billion euros in 2008 and will rise to between 71.6 billion and
114.4 billion by 2050.
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