The unions want to paralyze France on Tuesday in protest of the unpopular pension reform, the main project of Emmanuel Macron in his second five-year term as president of the Republic.
The strike in transport, refineries, education and the metallurgical industry, among other sectors, and the more than 300 demonstrations throughout the country represent the biggest challenge to Macron since the protests began in January.
The novelty of the sixth day of mobilizations is the will of the organizers to "stop" the country and the announcement of strikes not only for one day, but prolonged for a longer time, in transport and energy.
The mobilization coincides with the examination of the reform in the Senate, controlled by the moderate right of Los Republicanos (LR), after the hectic passage of the text through the National Assembly, where Macron's supporters form the first bloc in number of deputies, but they lack an absolute majority.
The day of blockades is a test for Macron and for the unions and opponents of the reform.
It may happen that it is a last attempt, spectacular but unsuccessful to stop it and that it does not convince the president to withdraw it and end up approving it.
The other scenario is that the massive demonstrations and the impact of the blockades on the economy and society force him to withdraw it or at least correct its central points.
Nearly 70% of French opposes the reform, according to polls.
Some union actions began before Tuesday, with reductions in electricity production since the weekend and blockades of carriers on roads since Monday.
The strike will affect rail transport: only one in five high-speed trains will work within France and none to Spain.
Flights from French airports are expected to be reduced by 20-30%.
In Paris and its periphery, the circulation of the metro and suburban trains will be reduced by at least half.
The authorities have recommended that the French telework.
The objective of the conveners is to exceed the number of protesters on January 31, when 1.27 million people took to the streets of the cities and towns of France, according to the police, and 2.5, according to the unions.
“There is a right to strike, but using words like bringing the French economy to its knees seems serious to me,” Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne said on Monday.
Laurent Berger, general secretary of the moderate CFDT union, lamented in France Inter the lack of availability of Macron to negotiate: "The President of the Republic cannot continue to turn a deaf ear [to the rejection of the reform]."
The objective of the conveners is to exceed the number of protesters on January 31, when 1.27 million people took to the streets of the cities and towns of France, according to the police, and 2.5, according to the unions.
In the image, a general view of the train tracks at the Gare du Nord station in Paris, this Tuesday.
Nathan Laine (Bloomberg)
The unions want to paralyze France in protest of the unpopular pension reform, which raises the retirement age to 64, the main project of Emmanuel Macron in his second five-year term as President of the Republic.
In the image, participants in the Nantes march.SEBASTIEN SALOM-GOMIS (AFP)
The novelty of the sixth day of mobilizations is the will of the organizers to "stop" the country and the announcement of strikes not only for one day, but prolonged for a longer time, in transport and energy.
In the image, a group of young people participate in the demonstration in Nantes.
SEBASTIEN SALOM-GOMIS (AFP)
The mobilization coincides with the examination of the reform in the Senate, controlled by the moderate right of Los Republicanos (LR), after the hectic passage of the text through the National Assembly, where Macron's supporters form the first bloc in number of deputies, but they lack an absolute majority.
In the image, a blocked road, in Sainte-Marie (La Réunion), this Tuesday.
RICHARD BOUHET (AFP)
The day of blockades is a test for Macron and for the unions and opponents of the reform.
In the image, several users get off a train at the Parisian Gare du Nord station.Nathan Laine (Bloomberg)
Macron justifies raising the retirement age to 64 because of the aging population and the need to balance the books as there are fewer and fewer workers.
In the image, the atmosphere of the protest in the old port of Marseille. NICOLAS TUCAT (AFP)
The detractors of the reform (unions, left-wing parties and the extreme right) argue that it is socially unfair and that it will penalize people who started working younger.
In the image, a protester dressed as the French president attends the protest in Dunkirk.
FRANCOIS LO PRESTI (AFP)
Former presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, from La Francia Insumisa (LFI), has affirmed that the "direct" person responsible for the current situation is President Emmanuel Macron, whom he has asked to take "the democratic initiative".
In the image, trucks queue up to take the ferry in Calais, this Tuesday.
FRANCOIS LO PRESTI (AFP)
Dozens of protesters participate in a march against the French government's pension reform plan in Pont-Audemer. GONZALO FUENTES (REUTERS)
Several trade unionists warm themselves at a bonfire during a road blockade near Le Havre, in northwestern France, on Tuesday.LOU BENOIST (AFP)
Macron justifies the increase in the retirement age to 64 due to the aging of the population and the need to balance the accounts as there are fewer and fewer workers to cover the pensions of more retirees.
He argues that working two more years is the only way to maintain this pillar of the welfare state.
The detractors of the reform (the unions, the left-wing parties and the extreme right) argue that it is socially unfair and that it will penalize people who started working at a younger age, with lower wages and with jobs that are more physically demanding.
They argue that it erodes the French social model.
The legislative process is being complicated.
On February 18, the deadline for debates in the National Assembly expired without there being time to proceed to a vote.
Now the law has gone to the Senate and, if it is approved there, it will have to agree on a joint text with the National Assembly that will then be submitted to a vote by both Chambers.
The deadline to adopt the law at the end of March.
If the macronistas do not obtain a majority, the Government has the option of imposing it through article 49.3 of the Constitution, which allows the debates to end and adopt it unless a motion of censure brings down the Executive.
But then it will risk further inflaming the spirits in the unions, the opposition and the street.
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