French unions protest retirement age reform

Tens of thousands of French workers held street rallies yesterday to oppose President Nicolas Sarkozy's plan to raise the age of retirement.

While claiming they had met their target of exceeding the numbers who participated in a similar strike day in March, union leaders admitted they have more work to do.

"There will certainly be another stage. We'll decide within the union movement if it should take place at the end of June or start of September, or both," said François Chereque, leader of the CFDT union.

"It's a long distance course, not a sprint like the government's strategy. Everything will increase in stages," said Alain Olive of Unsa.

There were also strikes at some large private sector employers, but rallies were dominated by government employees. Shops and businesses in Paris were working as normal. Public transport was only mildly disrupted nationwide, with three quarters of regional trains and all high-speed TGV services running as normal.

A poll conducted two weeks ago by CSA/CECOP showed a narrow majority accepts the change is inevitable, whereas a later survey found a similarly narrow majority thinks it unnecessary. In common with much of Europe, France is grappling with a huge public deficit, and the government argues that reforming pension rules and delaying the minimum retirement age will help control mounting debt.

Mr Sarkozy, who has record low poll ratings and faces a re-election fight in two years, has been cautious, refusing to speak of an austerity programme. Nevertheless, he plans to abolish retirement at 60, a cherished symbol for the French left of its victories under late president François Mitterrand.

French retirees receive 85 per cent of their pension payments from state schemes and although 60 is the theoretical minimum age for retirement on a full state pension, various special schemes exist in the public sector for those with jobs perceived as tough or those who started in work in their teens.

On average French men retire at 58.7 years and women at 59.5, compared to an OECD average of 63.5 and 62.3. As France has one of the world's longest life expectancies, workers spend on average a quarter century in retirement.

"It's a demographic problem. France is behind Malta as the country where we work the least," Budget Minister François Baroin told i-Tele.