The secretary general of the CFDT was the guest of “8:30 a.m. franceinfo”, Thursday March 16, 2023.
Laurent Berger, general secretary of the CFDT, was the guest of the 8:30 a.m. franceinfoThursday March 16, 2023. Pensions, article 49.3, Marine Le Pen, garbage collectors, inflation… He answered questions from Lorrain Sénéchal and Salhia Brakhlia.
Pension reform: Marine Le Pen is “ambushed” and “it scares me”
“From the start, the National Rally and Madame Le Pen have been in ambush” And “it scares me”, said Laurent Berger. With this pension reform, “we put it back in the saddle”he is alarmed. “The social debt that will take place with this reform, the feeling of contempt, unfortunately, it will be exploited by the populists and particularly by the far right”he explained. “We give way to Madame Le Pen”, he assures. Laurent Berger does not regret “no way” his vote for Emmanuel Macron in the second round of the presidential election. He believes that the arrival of Marine Le Pen in power, “it would be worse socially first, I’m sure. But above all, it would be worse politically, democratically, it would be worse in terms of fundamental rights, public freedoms, discrimination. You don’t have to mess around”he said.
Pension reform: 49.3 would be “a democratic vice”
Laurent Berger estimated that the use of 49.3 to adopt the pension reform would be “a democratic vice”. According to him, “We can not do otherwise than by voting. It would be completely incredible. It would be a democratic vice to do by 49.3”he said. “It’s a democratic necessity. Democracy is never just about courage, it’s an obligation imposed on each other”he recalled.
If the executive does not draw 49.3, the pension reform project will be submitted to the votes of the deputies Thursday afternoon, while the senators largely adopted the final text in the morning. On the government side, there are its supporters in the National Assembly, especially among Les Républicains who have the power to tip the scales. The boss of the CFDT denounced “bargaining” of the majority with deputies to ensure their vote: “We are in a form of feverishness” government, he said.
Pensions: in the event of adoption, “anger and protest will not cease”
If adopted by Parliament on Thursday, “The anger and the contestation of this reform will not stop. There will remain a feeling of malaise in the world of work and of discontent”, he says. Laurent Berger warns that“there will be a sequel”. According to him, “it is not possible, after the anger that is expressed and the feeling of contempt that is felt, that overnight, nothing will happen”, he said. The challenge to the pension reform could take other forms than demonstrations: “We are not going to hold demonstrations for six months to end up at fifteen behind a banner”he quips.
Requisition of garbage collectors on strike: “It’s not worthy!”
The prefect of police of Paris plans to requisition striking garbage collectors to collect some 8,000 tons of waste which litter the streets of the capital while employees in charge of collection are on strike against the pension reform. “It’s not worthy to do this to these workers”reacted Laurent Berger. “I don’t know how the prefect of police is going to do it” to find garbage collectors, he wondered. “It is very very dangerous in public speaking to announce that we are going to do something and to have difficulty in carrying it out”he warned.
Agreement between the government and the distributors: “It will not be enough”
While inflation in February is at 6.3% over one year, the government has reached an agreement with distributors. They promised groceries at the lowest possible price for three months starting Wednesday, March 15. “This pressure on distributors will not be enough”believes Laurent Berger. “You have to look at the products first. Just because you’re poor doesn’t mean you have to eat shit”, he blurted out. To really help the French in difficulty in the face of inflation, “we must also act on income” And “on targeted aid to the most modest households”he explained.
————–
Find the entire “8:30 am franceinfo” of Thursday March 16, 2023: