Despite all the protests, the French Senate has passed the decisive article for the government’s planned increase in the retirement age from 62 to 64. 201 senators voted in favor of this early Thursday morning in Paris, against 115. The debate on the entire pension reform is expected to continue throughout the day.
The planned pension reform provides for an increase in the retirement age from 62 to 64 years. There is enormous resistance to them, with nationwide protests in recent weeks in some cases more than a million people taking to the streets. At the same time, there were nationwide strikes, which led to bottlenecks at petrol stations and countless train cancellations. Strikes and protests are expected to resume on Thursday.
With the reform, the French government wants to ensure that French people work longer in order to prevent a deficit in the pension fund. In addition, the minimum pension is to be raised to 1,200 euros for full contribution periods. The recruitment of seniors should be encouraged.
The massive wave of protests across the country that has been going on for weeks is not only aimed at the pension reform. It is also an expression of general disenchantment with politics and concerns among the population about the increased prices.
