On Thursday morning, protesters blocked the access road to the first terminal of Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. Meanwhile, about 30% of flights have been canceled at Orly airport.
The French railway operator SNCF says that half of its high-speed trains are not running due to a strike by workers. Also, several train journeys in Paris and Marseille have been cancelled.
Protesters have also blocked important highways and transport hubs near Lille, Toulouse, Lyon and other cities.
At the same time, a strike by garbage collectors is still ongoing in Paris, with thousands of tons of garbage piling up on the streets of the French capital.
The strikes are also expected to affect work at ports and oil refineries.
The French government, using the controversial article 49, part 3 of the constitution, decided last Thursday to approve the bill on the reform of the pension system by decree, refusing to vote in the National Assembly. This caused outrage among members of parliament and the public.
On the other hand, on Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that he wants the pension reform to take effect by the end of the year, stressing that it is necessary.
The reform of the pension system is one of the cornerstones of Macron’s second presidency.
The main component of the reform is raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 years. In addition, it is planned to extend the mandatory social insurance contribution period for receiving a full pension.
At the same time, it is planned to raise the minimum pension to 1,200 euros.
The government states that the reform is necessary because the current pension system is not sustainable and is threatened with a deficit in the near future.
CONTEXT:
The French central government wants to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, as well as extend the period of mandatory social security contributions to receive a full pension. In addition, it is planned to eliminate the pension privileges of certain professions.
The government states that the reform is necessary because the current pension system is unsustainable and faces a deficit in the near future.
This reform is very unpopular – both the public and the opposition parties oppose it. All major trade unions of the country had organized strikes, large-scale protests also took place.
The government, using the controversial constitutional norm, decided to approve the unpopular bill on the reform of the pension system by decree, refusing to vote in the National Assembly. This caused the outrage of both members of parliament and the public, but the government passed the subsequent vote of no confidence.
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