French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne announced the content of the pension reform, which took place amid the election promises of French President Emmanuel Macron.
Explaining that in the country where the current retirement age is 62, the legal retirement age will be gradually increased by 3 months each year and reach 64 in 2030, starting from September 1st, and pointing out that it will be necessary to have paid a premium for 43 years in order to receive the full pension in 2027, pointed out that they will protect the age of 67, which is the automatic right of retirement.
Underlining that the share of wear and tear in some professions should be taken into consideration, Borne said that a 1 billion euro fund will be created for the prevention of occupational wear and tear.
The minimum pension will be around 1200 euros
Borne stated that the lowest pension will be increased to 85 percent of the base price. Thus, the minimum pension will be around 1200 euros per month.
Mentioning that they will put an end to the majority of different types of retirement, Borne noted that this will be valid for new hires.
On the other hand, those who start working at an early age within the scope of the mentioned reform will be able to retire earlier and employees will not have to work for more than 44 years.
Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire stated that pension reform will bring 17.7 billion euros in 2030.
Opposition reacts to pension reform
In a statement on Twitter, Mathilde Panot, Member of Parliament for the Unyielding France party, described the government’s retirement project as “archaic, unjust and cruel” and included the words “Result: Miss Borne is not ashamed of anything”.
Jean-Luc Melenchon, from the Unyielding France party, which was the presidential candidate in last year’s elections, evaluated the pension reform announced by the government as “serious social regression” on his Twitter account.
“The French can count on all our determination to thwart this unjust reform,” Marine Le Pen, Member of Parliament for the National Union (RN), wrote on Twitter.
Different unions in the country issued a joint statement, calling for a strike and to take to the streets against the pension reform on January 19th.