French trade union leaders are counting on their members for a huge turnout on Thursday, the 11th day of strike action against the government’s pension reform. Talks between union representatives and Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne ended without agreement on Wednesday.
Another national day of strikes and protests – the 11th since the start of the year – has been announced for Thursday, with unions and opponents of the changes to the retirement system hoping to regain momentum.
The pension legislation is set to raise the minimum retirement age for most people from 62 to 64, bringing France more into line with its European neighbours.
The government argues that the changes are necessary to prevent the pensions system from plunging into deficit.
Critics say the pensions reform is unfair to workers in physically difficult jobs who start their careers early, as well as to women who interrupt their lives as employees to raise children.
All sides in the standoff are awaiting the verdict on 14 April over the reform from France's Constitutional Council, which has the power to strike out some or even all of the legislation.
Failed talks
Unions had warned ahead of Wednesday's meeting with Borne that they would leave the talks if she refused to discuss going back on the minimum retirement age.
"We again told the prime minister that the only democratic outcome could be the text's withdrawal.
The prime minister replied that she wished to maintain the text, a grave decision," Cyril Chabanier, of the CFTC union said, speaking on behalf of the country's eight main unions after barely an hour of talks.
With renewed fighting spirit, the union chiefs called for French people to take to the streets and strike en masse on Thursday.
Laurent Berger, head of the centrist CFDT union said they were counting on the Constitutional Council for wisdom.
"Our democracy needs appeasement, and this appeasement would be for the text not to be applied," he said.
Teachers
Twenty percent of primary school teachers have said they will go on strike on Thursday, according to the Snuipp-FSU union, a lower percentage than on previous strike days.
"We feel that it is becoming more and more complicated for colleagues to strike" because "wage withdrawals are starting to weigh", the general secretary of Snuipp-FSU, Guislaine David, explained to French agency AFP.
“There is also an expectation of the decision of the Constitutional Council” by the teachers, on 14 April, she added.
But "that does not mean they are not motivated".
Flights, trains cancelled
With regards to flights, the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (DGAC) is asking airlines to cancel 20 percent of their flights to Marseille-Provence, Toulouse, Bordeaux and Nantes on Thursday.
The national rail company SNCF plans to run 3 out of 4 TGVs as well as 1 out of 2 regional trains on Thursday.
Services in and around Paris will be almost normal on RER B and 3 out of 4 trains will run on RER A.
International Eurostar connections to England and Thalys to Benelux will be almost normal.
Garbage strikes
Meanwhile, a union representing Paris garbage workers announced that another strike is set to begin next week.
A three-week stoppage by refuse collectors last month to protest pension reforms left the city strewn with 10,000 tonnes of rubbish.
The hard-left CGT called on its members late Monday to begin another strike from Thursday 13 April.
