February 2023
17Feb

New pension strikes grip France as MPs wage legislative battle

The fifth day of action against President Emmanuel Macron's reform -- whose headline measure is raising the legal retirement age from 62 to 64 -- aims to keep up the pressure ahead of a wider mass walkout, planned for March 7. But unlike previous strike days, most mainline trains and the Paris metro were running normally, as fewer workers participated during school holidays across most of France. That was reflected in education ministry figures showing fewer than eight percent of teachers...

February 17, 2023
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09Feb

France’s Macron faces third round of pension reform strikes

President Emmanuel Macron and his government on Tuesday braced for a third wave of nationwide strikes and protests against plans to make the French work longer before retirement, as the bill started its bumpy passage through parliament. Rail services will be disrupted, school classes cancelled and refinery deliveries impacted as workers across multiple sectors walk out, and trade unions have urged the public once again to take to the streets in big numbers. The government says people must work two years...

February 9, 2023
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07Feb

France. New pensions showdown for Macron as reform hits parliament

French President Emmanuel Macron's government faces a crunch week of defending its contested pension reform, with fireworks expected in parliament and mass strikes and demonstrations planned on the streets. Walkouts and marches are planned for Tuesday and Saturday, while left-wing opponents of the minority administration have already filed thousands of amendments ahead of the parliamentary debate beginning on Monday afternoon. Trains and the Paris metro are again expected to see "severe disruptions" according to operators, and around one in five flights...

February 7, 2023
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01Feb

French workers bring Paris to a standstill in second mass strike over pension reforms

French schools and transportation networks were heavily disrupted Tuesday for the second time this month, as unions staged another mass strike against government plans to raise the retirement age for most workers. Unions and opposition parties called for people to protest in major cities, hoping for a repeat of the first major demonstration against the plans on January 19, when more than 1 million people took part. Strikes that day brought the transportation network to a standstill and shuttered the...

February 1, 2023
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January 2023
31Jan

France faces second wave of strikes in protest against pension reform

France is bracing for another day of mass protests and strikes on Tuesday over proposed pension reforms championed by President Emmanuel Macron. The government and the political opposition continue to trade blame for the expected disruption in schools, the fuel distribution sector and public transport. An estimated 1.1 million people took to the streets for the first strike day on 19 January, according to official statistics. That was the biggest demonstration since the last major round of pension reform under...

January 31, 2023
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30Jan

French PM says pension age hike ‘non-negotiable’ as strikes loom  

Demonstrators hold flares during a procession against a pension reform in Paris, on January 26, 2023. France’s prime minister on Sunday ruled out backtracking on a plan to raise the retirement age as unions prepared for another day of mass protests and strikes against the contested reform. An increase in the minimum retirement age to 64 from the current 62 is part of a flagship reform package pushed by President Emmanuel Macron to ensure the future financing of France’s pensions system. After...

January 30, 2023
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24Jan

France to move ahead on pension reform despite protests

The French government on Monday said it would move forward with a pension reform plan that has been met with fierce opposition from unions, left-wing parties, and the general public. The plan envisages raising the retirement age gradually from 62 to 64 by 2030, and increasing the number of years needed to pay into the system to obtain a full pension from 42 to 43. All people in retirement in France receive a state pension — currently around €1,400 ($1,500) per...

January 24, 2023
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20Jan

More than 1m march in France amid strikes over plan to raise retirement age

More than 1 million people have taken part in demonstrations across France as transport, schools and refineries were hit by strikes in protest at Emmanuel Macron’s unpopular plans to raise the retirement age by two years to 64. The interior ministry said 1.12 million people protested nationwide on Thursday, with 80,000 taking part in the biggest rally in Paris. Trade unions said the figure was even higher. Police made arrests on the edges of the march in central Paris amid clashes...

January 20, 2023
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19Jan

France comes to standstill in strike over pension reform

Trains ground to a halt in France on Thursday, schools were shut and refinery shipments blocked as workers walked off their jobs in an attempt to derail the government’s plans to raise the retirement age by two years to 64. The nationwide day of strikes and protests is a major test for President Emmanuel Macron, who says his flagship reform, which opinion polls show is very unpopular, is vital to ensure the pension system does not go bankrupt. The challenge for...

January 19, 2023
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11Jan

France unveils plan to raise retirement age by two years to 64

France's government has proposed raising the legal retirement age from 62 to 64 by 2030 in a major reform to the pension system. PM Elisabeth Borne said the changes were necessary to prevent a major deficit in the system in the future. Reforming pensions was one of President Emmanuel Macron's main promises when he was first elected in 2017. But the details immediately triggered an angry response from the unions, with plans for strikes on 19 January. Ms Borne's handling of an explosive...

January 11, 2023
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