Demonstrations, debates in the National Assembly … Executive and union will tackle Monday, February 7, a crucial week for pension reform, carried by a minister, Olivier Dussopt, who is weakened by suspicions of favoritism.
Without calling into question the cardinal measure of the reform, the decline in the retirement age from 62 to 64, Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne took a step this Sunday, February 5, in the direction of the LR group, whose voices are essential to pass the reform. “We are going to move by extending the long career system to those who started working between the ages of 20 and 21”which will allow them to “leave at 63”she announced in the “Journal du dimanche”.
Faced with the pension reform, anger and resignation
Elisabeth Borne also assured of her ” trust “ the Minister of Labor Olivier Dussopt, in the front line on the reform, while he is weakened by suspicions of “favoritism” in the awarding of a public contract when he was mayor of Annonay.
“We need to amplify”
On the side of the unions, the determination is far from weakening. After two days of strikes and demonstrations, on January 19 and 31, the last of which exceeded the 2010 participation record, the intersyndicale announced two new days of action at a closer pace, on Tuesday 7 and Saturday 11 FEBRUARY.
“We need to amplify” mobilization, urged on France 2 Thursday the secretary general of the CFDT, Laurent Berger.
The unions, however, remain cautious about their chances of matching Tuesday’s mobilization (1.27 million demonstrators according to the police, more than 2.5 million according to the organizers): the school holidays began on Saturday for zone A and the opponents to the reform could choose one or the other of the two dates. “We combined a weekday and a Saturday, we will see on all two days, despite this school holiday period”said Friday the secretary general of the CGT, Philippe Martinez.
“By dint of working, we will be older than our patients”: words of demonstrators in the Parisian procession
From a security source, the authorities expect Tuesday a mobilization oscillating between 900,000 and 1.1 million people, including 70,000 maximum in Paris, where the procession will parade from the Place de l’Opéra to that of the Bastille. An inter-union will be held at the Labor Exchange in Paris in the evening.
The strikes should once again particularly concern the energy, refinery and rail transport sectors, which have planned to stop work on February 7 and 8.
An obstacle course for the government
Laurent Berger, number one of the first French union, warned against any use of 49.3 to pass the reform without a vote in Parliament. He expects the latter “that he says ‘it’s not reasonable, in this social conflict […] to postpone the retirement age from 62 to 64”. For her part, Elisabeth Borne “not considering” the hypothesis of drawing as in the fall on 49.3. Government and majority would come out of it “politically weakened”admits MP Stéphanie Rist (Renaissance), rapporteur of the bill.
“Two more years, for free”: women facing pension reform
The battle which begins Monday afternoon in the hemicycle of the Palais Bourbon promises in any case to be an obstacle course for the government.
The LFI deputies will immediately defend a request for the rejection of the entire reform which worries the presidential camp. Then the RN group will carry its request for a referendum on the reform, which has little chance of being voted by the Assembly. The deputies will then tackle the some 20,000 amendments tabled on the bill, including 13,000 by LFI.
If the Assembly does not come to the end of the amendments by midnight February 17, the text will still be able to pass to the Senate, due to the choice of the executive to resort to an amending budget from the Secu.
By the way, what is the purpose of the legal retirement age? Three economists were asked the question
