Benjamin Peter, edited by Julien Moreau 19:58 pm, March 22, 2023

In Toulouse, in Haute-Garonne, the railway workers, quickly joined by the interprofessional, met at the Matabiau station to block the tracks for about ten minutes. A TGV that was supposed to leave for Paris had to stay at the dock. The railway workers who followed the interview with the President of the Republic are disappointed not to have been heard and expect a renewed mobilization.

The leader of the rebellious France, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, was this Wednesday, March 22 in Toulouse in the company of railway workers and the interprofessional. The former presidential candidate reacted to the interview with the head of state, denouncing the arrogance and contempt of the president and calling for a massive mobilization in the streets on Thursday against the pension reform. Many of the railway workers did not even watch the televised intervention of the tenant of the Elysee, around 12 noon, they were even busy blocking the tracks of the Toulouse Matabiau station.

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"It affected a very small part of the population"

"When there are important things to say to the French, it is not these time slots that he takes and it is on all television and radio channels," said Laura, a driver met by Europe 1, referring to previous speeches. "Today (Wednesday), if he took the 13H, on TV, it is because frankly, he touched a very small part of the population. He had to speak because he was silent for a very long time, after this 49.3. But for me, he had nothing to say, "says the driver.

Patrick listened to the interview with the head of state and until the end. For him, it will only fuel the anger of the demonstrators: "I would have liked him to calm the game and listen to the employees who are in the street. There, it turns us on. It is fuel for the social tank. It will mobilize for tomorrow," he said.

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"He is contemptuous, he is arrogant"

Sébastien Aïssou, railway worker and deputy secretary general of the CGT, regrets a missed opportunity to appease the country. According to him, the only option left to the President of the Republic is the withdrawal of the reform: "He is contemptuous, he is arrogant, in fact, he has heard nothing. I think he's adding fuel to the fire," he said. "As long as we have public opinion and people who have understood, contrary to what he tries to explain that we have understood nothing about the reform, he will systematically find people on the street."

The railway workers are calling for a massive strike in all sectors of activity to bend the government, which, according to them, continues to ignore them. At the SNCF, they expect an even more followed movement than in the last 15 days.