Unions swear to paralyze France on pensions

PARIS (AP) — Roads closed, oil refineries blocked, planes and trains grounded. Unions were threatening to cripple the French economy this week, in what they hoped would be their biggest challenge yet to President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to raise the retirement age.

The first actions were expected on Monday, when truckers were told to block freeways and major intersections in low-speed actions called “snail” operations. The unions had planned an indefinite SNCF strike from Monday afternoon.

The government was preparing for the biggest incidents on Tuesday, when strikes in various sectors and protests against the pension law were expected across the country. The reform, which would increase the legal retirement age from 62 to 64 and would require 43 years of contributions to obtain a full pension, is now the subject of parliamentary debate.

“There will be a very strong impact” from the strikes, Transport Minister Clément Beaune told regional radio France-3 on Sunday. “I know for a lot of people it will be a real headache.”

Labor Minister Olivier Dussopt told FranceInfo news television on Monday that “the expression of disagreement is legitimate, but it must not lead to a blockade of the country, which would be dangerous for our economy”.

Authorities urged people to work from home on Tuesday if possible.

The complex pension law is a centerpiece of Macron’s presidency and his efforts to keep the French economy globally competitive. The centrist government, close to the business sector, has said it must maintain the solvency of the pension system in the face of an aging population and falling birth rate.

Critics, who opinion polls show include a majority of French voters, say the changes threaten hard-fought French rights. Left-leaning lawmakers say corporations and the wealthy should do more to keep the system afloat.

The project has sparked the most heated debate in years in the French Parliament.

The text is now being debated in the Senate, where the Conservatives are in the majority. The proposal is expected to go to a vote later this week in the upper house, where Republicans have said they will vote alongside Macron’s centrists to raise the retirement age.

The French civil aviation authority has asked companies to cancel 20% of flights at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport and 30% of flights at Orly airport, in addition to cancellations in other cities . Trains to Germany and Spain were due to stop on Tuesday, and those to and from Britain would be cut by a third, according to SNCF.

France’s far-left CGT union also called on Tuesday for strikes at factories that make Renault, Peugeot and Citroen cars, Airbus planes and other hubs. Unions of stevedores threatened Wednesday to block the ports.

The leader of the more moderate CFDT union, Laurent Berger, called for a “very powerful day of action” on Tuesday with “many, many people on the streets”. He said more than 250 protests had been called in different parts of the country. The unions would then hold a meeting to decide on the next steps for mobilization, he added.

Unions have mobilized some of the biggest protests in France in decades since the reform was introduced in January, but this week appeared to pose a particularly big challenge.

Protests focusing on women and the impact of pension reform on working mothers were expected on Wednesday, coinciding with International Women’s Day.

And on Thursday, unions representing students who had not yet entered the labor market were trying to mobilize young people to take to the streets to share their concerns about the retirement age.

Although the measure has a good chance of passing the Senate, unions hoped the strikes and protests this week would keep the pressure on the government for concessions during its laborious pipeline.