Hundreds of thousands of French people have taken to the streets in protest after President Emmanuel Macron vowed to push for pension reforms, creating further dissatisfaction across the country.
The union-led protests are in opposition to a law that would raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. The demonstrations, which have been ongoing since January, have been organized by unions and have attracted large numbers of people.
The Confederation of General Workers (CGT) head, Philippe Martinez, has stated that the best move to retaliate against the president would be a strike and street demonstrations by a million people. Today’s strike will severely disrupt train operations, affecting airports as well. Meanwhile, teachers, professors, and other occupations are taking off from work, while strikes at oil depots and waste collectors have continued.
Although most of the protests have been peaceful, dissatisfaction has grown more intense after the government exercised constitutional special powers to push for legislation that was not passed by a vote in parliament last week.
In a statement yesterday, President Macron insisted that new laws were needed and would come into effect later this year. The strikes have severely disrupted daily life, and more protests are expected if the government continues to push for the pension reform law.