“It was a meeting for nothing” : this is what the representative of Force Ouvrière affirmed, after a two-hour meeting with the social partners, on the burning issue of pensions, organized by the Minister of Labor Olivier Dussopt, Monday September 19. According to several unions present, the minister reaffirmed the government’s ambition to carry out the pension reform by the summer of 2023. The last report of the Pensions Orientation Council (COR) predicts a further deterioration of the system with recurring deficits from 2023, and until the mid-2030s in the best case scenario.
>> Pension reform: the majority divided, the unions ready to draw
Two scenarios are being studied, recalled Olivier Dussopt. Either the government passes an age measure via an amendment, during the debate this fall on the social security financing bill (PLFSS), with possible recourse to 49.3 in the event of a blockage. Either he engages in a more global consultation of three or four months with the trade unions and employers’ organizations before legislating a little later.
Nevertheless, the Minister specified that no decision would be taken before Thursday: the Pensions Monitoring Committee (CSR) must give its opinion to the Prime Minister on that day on the state of the pensions system, with possible corrective actions, if necessary. Elisabeth Borne will also receive the heads of parliamentary groups at Matignon on Wednesday on the pension file.
The unions keep a mixed feeling of their meeting with Olivier Dussopt at the Ministry of Labor. “The government made this meeting to occupy the land”, believes the representative of Force Ouvrière, Michel Beaugas. He explains that he has the impression that the Minister has come to explain how to properly read the report of the Pensions Orientation Council. Above all, he has the feeling that the minister insisted on the announced deficits, and not on the fact that the share of pension expenditure in national wealth remains under control. A demonstration summarized by Yvan Ricordeau, of the CFDT: “Blacken the financial perspective to legitimize a measure that would intervene quickly”, whereas according to him, this is not justified. “There is no fire in the pension system, so let’s not set the country on fire over this issue.”
The trade unions finally renewed their warnings. The CFDT notably affirmed that it would not participate in any meeting at the Ministry of Labor by September 26, the date on which the social security financing bill will be presented to the Council of Ministers. They do not want “to be instrumentalized”, says their representative. And if the government passed by force, all the organizations confirmed that they would call for mobilization: the CFTC even affirmed that in the event of a passage by force, it would withdraw from the National Council for Refoundation. Catherine Perret on behalf of the CGT, threatens in advance to “immediately cut off all discussion with the government” and of “enter into social confrontation” if a pension reform was included in the next Social Security budget.
According to Cyril Chabanier, confederal president of the CFTC, guest of franceinfo, if the government wants to address the issue of pensions, “it must be done in order, that is to say, deal with the crucial subjects” citing among others, the employment of seniors, hardship, long careers. Subjects that the government does not initially address: “They tell us: we first set an age and then we will talk about all these subjects and we will create exceptions”believes Cyril Chabanier, who recalls that “the current pension system is anything but fair” and said he wanted to take part in the negotiations “to have a fairer system” : “we cannot have French people who accept a pension reform if they do not feel that it is fair and more egalitarian”.