“This mobilization is hardening and it is a long-term one”, exclaims Pierre Licout, departmental co-secretary of the FSU (Unitary Trade Union Federation), from the start of the rally, this afternoon, in Chartres, for the act II of the mobilization against the pension reform project.
In the ranks of the demonstration, the participants consider themselves more numerous than last time. According to the authorities, 6,000 people were present, 7,500 by our own count and 15,000 according to the CFDT (French Democratic Confederation of Labor) and FSU unions.
On condition of anonymity, some union representatives believe that the figures for Thursday, January 19 had been overestimated by the authorities, in order, they believe, “to demonstrate that the following mobilizations would be weaker”.
Pension reform: back in pictures on a day of demonstrations in Eure-et-Loir
A mobilization party to last?
The demonstrators encountered along the way say they are ready to make this movement a lasting one. “We will come back as many times as necessary”, anticipates Pascal Valaeys, general secretary of the CFDT services in Eure-et-Loir.
“We won’t give up. The watchword for all the unions is to withdraw the 64-year-olds from this reform. »
Words confirmed by all the demonstrators. Some high school students, like Maurane and Mathieu, came to demonstrate for the first time. “We understood why we had to mobilize. We discussed it with our professor of economics and social sciences. We will demonstrate again and as long as necessary, ”explains the 17-year-old student. They came from the Jehan-de-Beauce high school, others from the Fulbert high school, two establishments in Chartres.
“People are fed up with exhaustion at work, while the French have been more productive since the shift to 35 hours,” said Jean-Luc Roubaud, departmental secretary of Unsa (National Union of Autonomous Trade Unions This reform affects everyone and brings together all unions and all professions.”
“says Jean-Luc Roubaud (departmental secretary of Unsa, National Union of Autonomous Trade Unions)
The inequalities and hardship pointed out
Whatever the age and socio-professional category, “the demonstrators will come back as long as the reform is not withdrawn or revised”, according to Sébastien Macquet, a 47-year-old maintenance technician.
“One would have thought that the movement is running out of steam with the purchasing power which drops each month, but a reform which affects the retirement age, it affects everyone.”
Christine Lemoal (general secretary of the CFDT in Eure-et-Loir)
Pierre Licout of the FSU is part of this same logic, that of a sustainable mobilization. “Some demonstrators feared that the last mobilization was just punctual, the government hoped. We prove today that all the unions and the majority of the population are against the reform.”
We are a quiet, determined force that will remain mobilized. We are determined to have this unjustified reform project withdrawn.
Some have declared themselves strikers to their employers, others have just walked off the job for a few hours to come and express their dissatisfaction in the street.
“I declared myself a striker during the first demonstration. Today, I just took advantage of an hour off. Next time I will declare myself a striker again. I allow myself two days of strike per month, as long as it is necessary, to counter this reform, ”estimates a Chartrain professor of history and geography.
Comparable situation for Alexia Logeais, in charge of provision between associations and companies. “I took a day off to demonstrate. Next time I will go on strike. We will see how long, I can afford it financially, but I will remain mobilized. Working in the social field, what affects me the most is the retirement age and the inequalities that this system creates between women and men. »
Demonstration in Chartres, Tuesday January 31, 2023, against the pension reform project. Photo: Quentin Reix.
“Risk of blockage” and next mobilizations
“We could increase salaries, that would allow us to contribute more”, testifies Jean-Michel, 43 years old. “It’s impossible not to be angry, it’s not normal that billionaires continue to get rich while we work like crazy. The government takes us for hams. There is a real problem of distribution of wealth. Some stuff themselves on our backs. “If Macron does not want to give in, he exposes himself to the risk of the country being blocked”, loose Éric Jarry, secretary general of the departmental union FO.
If Macron does not want to give in, he exposes himself to the risk of blocking the country.
The vice-president of the Regional Council, Jean-François Bridet (Ecology and solidarity), was also among the demonstrators. “I support this movement 300% against a government that manages an unequal economic structure. »
The inter-union, at the departmental level, will meet on Thursday to agree on a common organization on the holding or not of demonstrations on Tuesday February 7 and Saturday February 11.
Thomas Desprez
