French unions There was a rise in the turnout on Monday saw another round of strikes, protests, and demonstrations that aimed to force President Obama out. Emmanuel Macron abandons his plan to increase the minimum retirement age.
SNCF Rail Company stated that the services have been disrupted severely and will remain so on Wednesday: Travelers are urged to delay their trips Over the course of two days, Eurostar cancelled 38 international trains that linked London, Paris and Brussels to Amsterdam.
RATP also reported that Paris’ commuter and subway schedules were severely affected. They advised residents to stay at home and foresaw further disruptions. on Wednesday. Air France indicated that eight of the 10 short and medium-haul flights it would operate were expected to be operated by them on both days.
Trucks were unable to access any of France’s six main oil refineries due to striking workers, disrupting supply of fuels such as gasoline and diesel to the nation’s filling stations. Walkouts curbed Electricite de France SA’s hydropower capacity By 5.6 gigawatts in the early hours of Tuesday
“It’s going to be the biggest day of mobilization since the start of this conflict,” CGT union head Philippe Martinez told reporters. “We see people are still determined, and the anger is still just as strong.”
Start the French work longer and retire later is a key plank of Macron’s plan to make the economy more attractive for investment and business. He believes raising the minimum wage would be a better idea. retirement Ages between 62 and 64 are necessary for maintaining sound public finances while financing other priorities, such as the green transformation.
Labor unions They are part of a broad coalition opposing the overhaul. on A rise in participation in sixth round protests on Tuesday was the day after February’s participation fell significantly from its peak at 1.27 million. on January 31, according to estimates by the Interior Ministry.
According to provisional figures, there was a marked increase in strikes by public sector employees. These numbers were slightly lower than those at the same moment. on Protests began on the first day on Jan. 19. Jan. 19.
Surveys of opinion indicate French Opposition to the overhaul continues to be strong, but not as high as it was before. A survey of 1,002 adults by pollster Ifop for L’Humanite newspaper carried out on March 2nd and 3rd showed that 65% of respondents wanted the government to withdraw reform support for renewable strikes.
Macron’s government has shown no sign of backing down, however. Harris Interactive polled 1,119 voters for RTL radio, and AEF Info. on 79% of those polled expected that parliament would eventually approve the changes between March 3 and 6.
Through March 12, the Senate is reviewing this legislation. It is expected that it will be in effect by September.
Macron’s determination to push through the reform despite public opposition is set against a backdrop of mounting concern over inflation. France’s consumer prices rose by 7.2%, an unprecedented increase in the euro-era, in February compared to a year earlier. This was due to rising food and service costs.
“There’s of course never a good moment to carry out a pension reform, but some times are worse than others — and this is a particularly bad one,” Bloomberg was told by Bernard Sananes (president of Elabe pollster). “The pension reform is adding a layer of difficulty to those whose daily life is already difficult, and this is what the government underestimated.”
This Monday French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire unveiled a deal In a deal with the retailers, they were willing to accept a cut to their margins of several hundred millions euros in order to offer essential foods at the most affordable prices during a three month campaign to support households.
Concerning the strike’s impact on The French economy, it shouldn’t be overestimated, according to Charlotte de Montpellier, ING senior economist for France and Switzerland.
“Disruptions have been, for now, limited to some very specific sectors, such as transport,” She wrote. “Given the development of home working since the pandemic, it is likely that the indirect costs of transport disruptions on other sectors of activity will be much more limited than in previous strikes.”
She said that the economic impact could be quantifiable in cases where protests escalate and sectors are closed for several weeks. However, a greater impact than 0.2% seems unlikely.
–With assistance from Julien Ponthus and Francois de Beaupuy.
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