French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne unveiled a radical overhaul on Tuesday night of the country's pension payments which aims at raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 by 2030.
The measure - a key plank of Emmanuel Macron's second-term manifesto - unleashed calls for protests.
Leading trades unions - the CFDT, CGT, FO, CFE-CGC, CFTC, Unsa, FSU and Solidaires - responded to Borne's proposals with a call for a day of strikes and demonstrations on 19 January.
Borne said the minimum retirement age to be entitled to a full pension will be gradually increased by three months every year, starting this year.
Work
People will need to have worked for at least 43 years to get a full pension, starting from 2027, she said.
“Working more will allow future retirees to get higher pensions,” Borne said.
“By 2030, our system will be financially balanced,” she added.
"I'm well aware that changing our pension system raises questions and fears among the French," Borne added. "We offer a project to balance our pension system, a project that is fair."
Those who started working before the age of 20 will be able to get early retirement, Borne added.
Categories
Specific categories of workers such as police officers and firefighters will also be able to retire earlier.
Under the current system, all French workers receive a state pension.
The government argues that on average French people are living longer than before and therefore need to work longer to make the pension system financially sustainable.
French MPs will debate the nitty-gritty of the measures in the Assemblée nationale next month.
Those sessions are likely to be heated. Macron’s Renaissance party lost its parliamentary majority last year — and most opposition parties are opposed to the changes.
However, Borne promised to seek compromises with some other political groups.
It is understood government fixers are seeking deals with members of the centre right The Republicans party to pass the measure.
If that gambit fails, Macron's party may use a special power to force the law through parliament without a vote.
Pension reform has been one of the salient agonies of French politics over the past 30 years. All sides of the political spectrum acknowledge changes have to take place. But successive governments have failed to produce an acceptable plan
France’s Pensions Advisory Council issued a report last year showing that the pension system is expected to have a deficit over the next decade, with the government having to compensate.
On Tuesday, France’s main employers’ union, Medef issued a statement welcoming an indispensable reform to save our pension system.
.
