French Prime Minister Meets Opposition and Unions over Pension Law Protests

French Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, is set to meet with opposition leaders and trade unions in the coming week to put an end to weeks of protests against a new pension law. The demonstrations turned violent after the government passed the legislation this month without a final parliamentary vote. The law will raise the retirement age by two years, which has been met with public hostility.

President Emmanuel Macron has refused to delay or scrap the legislation, instructing the prime minister to seek fresh support in parliament. Borne’s meetings with political party leaders will aim to restart dialogue with unions over labor issues without mentioning the pension bill.

Borne has also promised not to use constitutional powers to adopt legislation without a vote again, except for budget bills. It remains uncertain if the government’s attempt to draw a line under the pension crisis will calm the majority of the public hostile to the reform and demonstrators exasperated by the adoption of the legislation without a final vote.

Union leaders have scheduled a 10th day of nationwide protests against the pension law on Tuesday, following violent clashes with police during the last day of action. Laurent Berger, the head of the CFDT union, proposed that Macron pause the law for six months to seek a possible compromise.

Staff Reporter