The CFDT's objective is to “continue to fight a reform that is deeply socially contested by many”.
Marylise Léon in Paris, September 24, 2024. (AFP / THOMAS SAMSON)
“There are other solutions” than raising the retirement age to finance the plans, assured Wednesday January 8 the number one of the CFDT Marylise Léon. Tuesday, she met François Bayrou who, according to the trade unionist, assured the subjects are “on the table” in the discussions initiated by the Prime Minister to “improve” the controversial pension reform.
Judging that “pensions are above all a question of work”, the general secretary of the first French union declared on
LCI
what
“the question of legal age, which is still the elephant in the middle of the room
it's 'how do I do it?' (…) Employees tell me 'how do I manage to work until I'm 64?'”.
François Bayrou affirmed in mid-December, shortly after his appointment as Prime Minister, that he believed there was another possible solution for financing the pension system than the postponement of the age from 62 to 64, established in the 2023 reform.
“Age was presented to us as a parameter for budgetary balance. We say that there are other solutions that can be looked at in terms of financing,” summarized Marylise Léon on Wednesday, insisting on
exemptions from social security contributions or the employment of seniors.
“The question of age is on the table”
In Matignon, François Bayrou “told us that
the question of age is on the table
and that all subjects can be addressed, including the flagship subject of the CFDT for 20 years, arduousness,” she repeated.
“I have a compass and I have a goal, which is to meet the expectations of employees and workers and to achieve progress and
continue to fight a deeply socially contested reform
by many citizens, who marched for months,” she insisted.
Asked whether the government could call into question the pension reform knowing that it is exposed to a risk of censorship, the leader of the CFDT considered that “a way through must be found”.
“Our expectations in his general policy speech are to have announcements on (…)
the question of employment, work, pensions
“, she added. And we need “a Parliament (…) of social union, which can truly work on texts, particularly within the framework of the budget (…), which are the bearers of justice social”, according to Marylise Léon. Because “policies come and go but it is always the same subjects which remain significant for the world of work”, she pointed out.
The general secretary of the CGT Sophie Binet will be received Wednesday evening by François Bayrou.
