Striking sanitation workers end the protest
After a threeweek-long strike that piled up mounds of trash weighing up to 10,000 tons on Paris streets, the CGT union representing sanitation workers announced that they would be returning to work on Wednesday. The workers have been protesting against French President Emmanuel Macron’s pension reform bill, which aims to overhaul the country’s retirement system by increasing the legal retirement age from 62 to 64.
Clean-up efforts underway
With the end of the sanitation strike, legally requisitioned workers will begin the clean-up process. The piles of trash have caused unsanitary conditions in Paris, leading to problems with rats and mice that could pose a danger to residents. Parisians welcomed the news of the return of sanitation workers and the beginning of the clean-up process after enduring weeks without trash pickup.
Protests signal an end
The suspension of the strike and dwindling protest numbers suggests that demonstrations against Macron’s pension bill may be coming to an end. Some Parisians are getting tired of the ongoing protests and the occasional violence that has accompanied them. However, an eleventh day of action against the pension bill is scheduled for April 6.
Retirement reform considerations in US
In contrast to France’s protests over retirement reform, lawmakers in the US are considering changes to entitlement programs such as Social Security due to population aging and declining birth rates. Trust funds that pay for retirement benefits could enter insolvency around 2032, leading to potential benefit cuts. One proposed solution is raising the full retirement age, which could lead to benefit cuts for retirees and place a burden on physically strenuous workers. Another proposed solution is expanding payroll tax or increasing the tax rate on employers and employees.
Planning ahead for potential changes
In light of these potential changes to Social Security, Americans need to plan ahead by putting away additional funding, planning to work longer, or phasing through retirement with parttime work. Lawmakers should address the issue as soon as possible to avoid benefit cuts in the future.
Social movements against pension reform in France
France has been going through a major social movement against President Macron’s pension reform for the last two months. Two thirds of the population and 93% of the active population are opposed to the bill, which has united all eight labor federations against its passage.
Finding effective collective action against government
To find effective collective action against an unyielding government, social movements in France can look towards their counterparts in the US. The movement participants in France face a conundrum of how to translate people’s discontent into active participation. Political rule has lost popular consent, and citizens are seeking ways to hold their government accountable while maintaining their safety and well-being.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons
