After Frédéric Souillot (FO) and Laurent Berger (CFDT) on Tuesday, François Hommeril (CFE-CGC) and Cyril Chabanier (CFTC) met the Prime Minister on Wednesday. Sophie Binet (CGT) must close the ball of interviews at 17:00.

All began by reiterating their opposition to the pension reform promulgated on 14th April. "We're not turning the page," Chabanier said. The unions have "not given up", stressed Mr. Hommeril.

Union leaders reiterated their support for the Liot bill to repeal the reform, which is theoretically due to be considered on 8 June, which the government is seeking to avoid.

Received on Tuesday, the secretary general of Force ouvrière, Frédéric Souillot, began his meeting with Elisabeth Borne by offering her a badge asking for the "withdrawal" of the reform.

"We talked about our demands", notably on wages, but "we did not accept a timetable" for negotiations on subjects other than pensions, he said, with this formula: "we opened the ball, but we did not dance".

"More confidence"

The number one of the union of executives, François Hommeril, was more conciliatory Wednesday, saying not to make the withdrawal of the reform a prerequisite for this "resumption of contact" with the head of government, even if the trade unions have "no confidence", and believe to have been "betrayed" on this issue.

CFE-CFC President François Hommeril in Paris, May 17, 2023 © Emmanuel DUNAND / AFP

Each trade union organization has set out its priorities. The CFE-CGC is waiting for the government to reopen the file of work orders, failing which it will consider that it is in "bad faith". But its leader does not seem optimistic, while the President of the Republic welcomed again last week these orders.

The union of executives also wants the government to return to the degressivity of unemployment benefits, and their modulation according to the economic situation. According to Mr Hommeril, the Prime Minister would consider "letting the social partners go back" on these measures as part of the negotiations they must open on unemployment insurance.

The CFTC wants any increase in the first level of the wage grid to result in an identical increase in the higher levels to at least 1.6 Smic.

It also advocates the introduction of a pension system for all employees.

According to Mr. Chabanier, Elisabeth Borne was open to discussion on pension provision, the conditionality of public aid to companies, the revision of salary scales, the opening of negotiations on the increase in the index point, the employment of seniors - even if she sometimes referred these subjects to discussion between social partners.

"We will judge on the acts," he warned, while defending the approach of the unions: "we can not not talk about these subjects". "We will not be satisfied with measures," warned Laurent Berger on Tuesday.

Cyril Chabanier, the boss of the CFTC, in Matignon, Paris, May 17, 2023 © Emmanuel DUNAND / AFP

Asked on France Inter on Wednesday morning, Binet said she would talk about "the demands of employees, the withdrawal of the pension reform, wage increases and the conditionality of public aid". The CGT wants wages to be indexed to inflation, like FO.

The CFDT pleads for a suspension of contribution exemptions for branches that have minima lower than the minimum wage.

The unions will present their common demands on May 30, before a 14th day of mobilization on June 6.

But some opponents "will not wait wisely" for these deadlines: the Network for the general strike, which wants to "build a real balance of power" with the executive, organized a rally at 16:00 near the Invalides, a few strides from Matignon, which gathered a few dozen people, AFP found.

© 2023 AFP