President Macron’s reform program faces a make-or-break moment, as French unions stage a day of mass strikes and protests on Thursday against his plans to push back the age of retirement. A new bill due to go through parliament will raise the official age at which people can stop work from 62 to 64. Intercity and commuter train services are badly disrupted. France strikes bid to halt Macron’s rise in retirement age.
Many schools and other public services are shut down. At Orly airport in Paris, one in five flights has been canceled. On the Paris metro, only the two driverless lines are working normally. Large demonstrations drawing tens of thousands are expected in Paris and other cities, where police will be out in force in case of violence from ultra-left “black bloc” infiltrators.
All the country’s unions including so-called “reformist” unions that the government had hoped to win to its side have condemned the measure, as have the left-wing and far-right oppositions in the National Assembly. “On Thursday the walls of the Élysée palace must tremble,” Communist Party leader Fabien Roussel said on Tuesday.
Because his Renaissance party does not have a majority in the Assembly, French President Emmanuel Macron will be forced to rely on support from the 60 or so MPs of the conservative Republican party. Though in principle in favor of pension reform, even some of them have warned they could vote against it.
With the parliamentary process expected to take several weeks, Mr Macron faces a rolling campaign of opposition, with further days of action likely in the days ahead. The worst outcome for the government would be rolling strikes in transport, hospitals, and fuel depots – effectively bringing the country to a standstill.
Political analysts agreed the mood of the country was hard to gauge, so it was impossible to predict whether the scale of the movement would be enough to force the president into a retreat. If that happened, it could mark the end of any serious reforms in this, his second term.
On the one hand, inflation, the energy crisis, and constant reports of run-down public services have left many people feeling anxious and irascible. President Macron’s poor image outside the prosperous cities contributed to the “yellow vest” insurrection four years ago, and could well do so again.
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