Protests expected tomorrow. Failed talks between the French government and unions on the pension law

The alliance of trade unions, which opposes the pension law in France, announced the failure of a meeting on Wednesday with Prime Minister Elisabeth Bourne for refusing to withdraw the retirement law, which was passed by the government without presenting it to parliament and sparked widespread protests in recent weeks.

The talks were held at the invitation of the government, in an attempt to calm down and get out of the political and social crisis caused by the passage of the retirement law, of which raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 years is one of the most prominent provisions.

The unions' meeting with Bourne, the first since protests against the pension reform law began, lasted less than an hour.

Cyril Chapanier, president of the French Confederation of Christian Workers (CFTC), said at the end of the meeting: "We reiterated to the prime minister the idea that there is no democratic solution except by withdrawing the text (pension reform), and the prime minister replied that she wanted to keep its text, it is a dangerous decision."

Government response

In response to the unions after their failed meeting with the prime minister, Emmanuel Macron's team today refused to acknowledge the existence of a "democratic crisis" reported by the unions, noting that French President Emmanuel Macron had "clarified and took over" the pension reform project.

On the sidelines of Macron's trip to China, a source in the French president's entourage said, "For an elected president with an elected majority to seek to implement a project that has been presented democratically, this is not called a democratic crisis."

In a related context, several French cities are preparing to go out on Thursday in new demonstrations against the pension law.

Unprecedented protests have taken place almost every week in France against raising the retirement age, culminating on March 1 with 3.<> million demonstrators, according to authorities.

The Constitutional Council is due to decide on April 14 whether the government's pension reform law complies with French law.