The unions fail to paralyze France, but they disrupt civic life with continuous strikes and street demonstrations. The sixth day of protest against the pension reform was once again a show of force, one more chapter in the war of nerves with the Government and with President Emmanuel Macron.
The strikes yesterday affected vital services such as rail and air traffic; public transport in large cities, especially Paris; the refineries; nuclear power plants; schools; museums, and garbage collection. The strike will continue, partially, today in some sectors. The inter-union coordinator last night called another protest this Saturday and asked Macron to receive them, with the notice that if he does not withdraw the reform, the situation will be "explosive."
The outcome of the most symbolic initiative of the second term of the current Élysée tenant remains uncertain. The legislative text is now in the Senate and will return to the National Assembly. The macronistas are in the minority in both chambers. The very vertical and presidential French system does not work in this situation. It is an institutional crisis that will leave wounds.
The delay in two years – from the current 62 to 64 – in the legal retirement age provokes a massive rejection in French society, according to all the surveys. The controversial project serves as a catalyst for the accumulated discontent, which already exploded in 2018 with the revolt of the yellow vests. There is a deep malaise due to the existential insecurity of growing layers of the population that are threatened by various factors such as job insecurity, rising prices, migratory pressure, the deterioration of public services and territorial imbalance. The high participation in the demonstrations in small and medium-sized cities is significant.
The unions, rearing their heads again after many years of losing influence, are united. They show convening capacity and great power in specific places to carry out actions with a strong impact, such as the blockade of refineries and the facilities where methane tankers unload liquefied natural gas.
"The President of the Republic cannot remain deaf, he cannot continue with this silence that has lasted two months," declared the general secretary of the country's largest union, the French Democratic Confederation of Labor (CFDT), Laurent Berger. Berger's role in the protest is being decisive, since he is in charge of a union of Christian origin, with a reputation for pragmatism and possibility. The full involvement of the CFDT and of Berger in particular gives greater credibility to the protest movement and erodes the position of the Government. Berger combines calls to participate in the strikes with messages to parliamentarians, including those from the conservative opposition, to convince them not to vote on the pension reform.
The French, very used to strikes, were farsighted. The Minister of Transport, Clément Beaune, invited all those who had that possibility to telework. Beaune warned that it would be "one of the most difficult days we have known" in the wave of protests. Many decided in effect to work from home. Hence, the traffic jams were less than any other morning. 650 kilometers of retentions were counted throughout France compared to 900 on average.
Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport, north of Paris, canceled 20% of its flights. Those of Nice, Paris-Orly, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Montpellier and Beauvais suppressed 30% of their operations.
Due to the strike, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) had to advance their trip to Munich to Monday, where they will play today against Bayern in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16. Those responsible for the club did not want to risk having problems to reach the Bavarian capital. Thousands of fans had to change their plans, and in many cases they went from the train to the private vehicle.
The energy sector, where the presence of members of the General Confederation of Labor (CGT), the traditionally most combative union, is very strong, joined the strike with intensity. In addition to the refineries, a sector of workers from the state electricity company EDF joined the strike. In the latter, due to union action, power has decreased in recent days by three megawatts, equivalent to the production of three nuclear reactors.
Yesterday there were more incidents in Paris than in the previous calls, with clashes with the police and 22 arrests. The presence of hundreds of highly radicalized yellow vests, anarchist and anti-system militants, the black blocs, and simple casseurs, rioters ready to clash with the police and destroy vehicles and street furniture had been announced. The management of public order in these delicate days has improved in the capital since the arrival of the new police prefect, Laurent Nuñez, who was number two in the Ministry of the Interior during Macron's first term.
While polls make it clear that the French are opposed to retiring later, there is also a certain fatalism. A poll by Le Journal du Dimanche showed that 66% of the population believes that, finally, the government will get away with it, despite the strikes.
The Government's strategy is to resist and maintain a dialogue speech until the last moment, even if the concessions made on the initial text are minimal. The official argument to carry out the reform is that the sustainability of the pension system is in danger and France cannot ignore what its neighbors are doing, all in the same line.
What never appears in government reasoning and hardly in public debate is that the reform is also a gesture towards the financial markets. In order to maintain their confidence, France needs to convince them of their desire to be rigorous and to reduce the deficit, which is much greater than the German one. Alain Minc, a businessman and advisor to several presidents, told the weekly Le Point that the unstated objective of the reform is to maintain the "miraculous" French risk premium. "The extreme left will tell us that it is a submission to the markets, but when you have three trillion in debt, you are already submissive," said Minc. The Government cannot back down, because the message to the world would be disastrous”.
