French President Emmanuel Macron insisted on the need for raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 in order to make the French pension system financially sustainable in the coming years, in a letter to workers' unions released Friday.
The move comes after more than a million demonstrators marched in cities and towns across France this week as train and metro drivers, refinery workers and others started open-ended strikes against the centrist government's plan.
Union leader Francois Hommeril of the CFE-CGC, which represents workers in the energy sector, among others, said Friday that Macron's letter appeared to be another "missed opportunity" for the president to pursue reforms while listening to concerned workers. Macron also recalled the measure was a key promise from his presidential campaign last year, adding that he made a concession by agreeing to put the age limit at 64, down from 65 as initially planned.
The government's decision to apparently push the bill through the Senate will "deepen the anger" among French workers, said Fabrice Coudour, a leader of the influential union CGT Energy. He called on strikers and opponents of the retirement reform to take their grievances to the streets on Saturday.
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