‘Working more for less is unsustainable’: Demonstrations across France for wages and pensions

It was the first day of strike and interprofessional mobilization since the beginning of the academic year. And the first since the re-election of Emmanuel Macron in April. On Thursday, September 29, more than 200 marches were formed across France at the call of the CGT, FSU, Solidaires and student and high school organizations (UNEF, FIDL, MNL and La Voix lycéenne), which gathered more than 250,000 a person CGT figures (the police have yet to reveal theirs). The participants of the rally decided to show their strength, because the autumn promises to be busy in social issues. And this even if Emmanuel Macron the day before chose a temporary review of the pension reform by opening a new round of consultations with the social partners and the political forces of the country, in order to implement a comprehensive bill. “Till Winter’s End”.

Because if the pension reform and especially the issue of raising the legal retirement age was clearly part of today’s speech, initially the mobilization began with the demand for an increase in wages, pensions, stipends and social minimums. inflation. “The message is clear: salaries should be increased, not the legal retirement age”It was also launched by CGT General Secretary Philippe Martínez before the demonstration in Paris at around 14:00.

“If there is a will to do bad pension reform, there will be people on the street who will say so,” Nathan, 33, a statistician.

In the capital, the march, which took place between Denfert-Rochereau and the Bastille, gathered around 40,000 demonstrators, organizers said, often showing a general frustrated by government policies. Mellen Maro, 34, is against it “General Government Policy”. “It is made by the rich and for the rich. and generally against the poor, against the workers”, is temporarily evaluating this childcare assistant in Paris and suburbs. Same story Benjamin Fredette, 27, a laboratory technician at the National Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment: “It is the whole social package of the government that we have to fight. Unemployment insurance reform, RSA, pension reform… the promise is the same: work more for less, it’s unsustainable. »

“I have been losing purchasing power every year since 2011 due to the under-indexation of the civil service index score to inflation.”, for his part worries Nathan, 33 years old, a statistician at Insee. Before warning: “If there is a will to implement a bad pension reform, there will be people on the street who will say so. » A possibility that boggles the mind. This is what 53-year-old Nuredin Medun, an employee of the Transdev transport group and a representative of the UNSA union, says. “Complete opposition to the pension reform project”and judges political leaders “Growing above the ground”. “We want people to work longer, but for what? To earn more in retirement? I do not believe. We do not have a sensible, future-proof policy. »