Pension

Two more years of work: Why French protesters feel ignored on pensions


Hundreds of thousands of French protesters have taken to the streets in recent weeks to demonstrate against the French government’s proposed reform to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. Most say they’re fighting to save a sacred – but broken – pension system.

But as the government’s retirement reform bill is debated at the National Assembly this month, there is an increasing disconnect between the public and the government about how best to do that.

Why We Wrote This

The French are taking to the streets to protest a planned increase in retirement age. While all agree reform is needed, many French are asking: Are we getting what we were promised?

The government has said that unless the French work longer, the numbers simply don’t add up: Without reform, the pension system will not be able to sustain itself for future generations. And though protesters say this is precisely their main concern, they don’t think working into old age is the right answer.

“In various studies, the French say that work is very important to them, not just the salary but what they get out of it personally,” says sociologist Dominique Méda. “French people are not lazy, they just don’t feel recognized for their work.”

It’s a frigid February afternoon; just above freezing. But it’s the first sunny day in weeks and there is a palpable energy outside the Paris Opera, where thousands have gathered in protest against the French government’s proposed reform to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. Raphael Alberto stands in a circle with his co-workers, holding a turquoise union banner.

“Today, the government says [the retirement age] will be 64, tomorrow, they might say it’s 67,” says Mr. Alberto, a junior-high school teacher in nearby Montreuil. “When will it stop?”

Mr. Alberto, like many protesters here, says working conditions have deteriorated in recent years and he’s afraid he won’t be healthy enough to enjoy his retirement by the time he takes it. “We’re one of the last countries to have this system, where we pay for our parents’ retirement and then young people pay for us,” he says. “It’s a true system of solidarity.”

Why We Wrote This

The French are taking to the streets to protest a planned increase in retirement age. While all agree reform is needed, many French are asking: Are we getting what we were promised?

Mr. Alberto, like most French protesters, says he’s fighting to save a sacred – but broken – pension system. But as the government’s retirement reform bill is debated at the National Assembly this month, there is an increasing disconnect between the public and the government about how best to do that.

The government has said that unless the French work longer, the numbers simply don’t add up: Without reform, the pension system will not be able to sustain itself for future generations. And though protesters say this is precisely their main concern, they don’t think working into old age is the right answer.



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