Olivier Dussopt, Minister of LaborFull Employment and Integration, was the guest at 8:30 a.m. franceinfo, Monday February 13, 2023. Pensions, contribution period, women, seniors, minimum pension, tweet from Thomas Portes… He answers questions from Marc Fauvelle and Renaud Dély.
Pension reform: “I only aspire to one thing, and that is to talk about the substance”
“I only aspire to one thing, it is to talk about the substance”, says Olivier Dussopt, while the parliamentary debate on the text of the pension reform began a week ago. He denounced the behavior of the oppositions: “We are facing a systematic obstruction of the coalition around insubordinate France”, he accuses. More than 20,000 amendments were tabled in the National Assembly, more than half of them by the LFI group.
Minimum pension at 1,200 euros: “It’s true” for a “full career”
Olivier Dussopt wanted to clarify the vagueness maintained for several days on the beneficiaries of the minimum pension at 1,200 euros: “When we say it’s for a full career, it’s very true”he says. “In the case of a full career at Smic, it allows you to have this minimum retirement”he adds. “One in four will have a better pension thanks to this reform than without the reform. We made a commitment at the request of the majority and also of the group of Republicans, to apply this revaluation to current retirees. They are 17 million and out of 17 million, 1,800,000 will be able to benefit from a revaluation which can go up to 100 € “he explains.
>> True from false. Missing trimesters, part-time, increase of 100 euros… Can we summarize the controversy over the pension at 1,200 euros?
Contribution period of 43 years: “It’s a floor!”
“We will not go beyond this minimum duration of 43 years”, for a full-rate pension, reaffirms the Minister of Labour, Full Employment and Integration. But “it’s a floor. The contribution period has always been a floor”he points out. “To say that no one will contribute a day over 43 would be lying to the French”he says. “We don’t want to go beyond that, but obviously there will always be men and women who work a few months longer”he admits. “To say that no one will contribute a day over 43 would be lying to the French because it never existed”explains Olivier Dussopt.
Women: “We must review all family rights” in 2024
“We must review all family rights” for women “in the context of a debate that we want to open”. But that won’t be for now. “If we did it in this reform, there would be a great risk that it would be quite sloppy”, justifies the Minister of Labor. The postponement of the legal retirement age from 62 to 64 means that women lose the benefit of the quarters linked to maternity.
According to a government impact study, women could be the losers of the pension reform. What the government disputes. “There will be a Social Security financing project for 2024. It may be the right vehicle” to reform women’s rights. “The pension inequality between women and men is real. Today it is still almost 30%. The pension system we have today is not built to be unfair to women. The pension system reflects injustices, career inequalities”he explains.
Employment of seniors: “Companies must be given time to adapt”
Before the financial sanctions, “Companies must be given time to adapt and make the necessary efforts” on the employment of seniors, explains Olivier Dussopt. “It’s a form of fair play“, he said. The government proposes the establishment of a mandatory seniors index in all companies with more than 50 employees. The text provides for a financial penalty, “if there is no compliance with this obligation”, he recalls. Companies will also have the obligation to negotiate with trade unions to develop the employment of seniors. “If they do nothing, in that case, more coercive actions are needed”he explains. “Either mandatory action plans, in the absence of financial sanctions, but in a second step”emphasizes Olivier Dussopt.
Tweet from LFI deputy Thomas Portes: “Appalling for the author”
“It’s appalling and it’s especially appalling for the author”reacts Olivier Dussopt who returned to the tweet of Thomas Portes who had shown his foot resting on a ball bearing the image of the Minister of Labor. “I have no contact with him. He did not seek any either. I consider that the office of the National Assembly made a decision that belongs to him. I have no comments to make because it’s the separation of powers”explains Olivier Dussopt, while the deputy was excluded for 15 days, the highest possible sanction.
He admits that the LFI MP’s tweet touched him: “Whether it’s my face or that of one of my colleagues, it’s the same. It’s the act and it’s the symbol of the photo that counts”he said. “Everyone has their own humor, but obviously it is not shared by many people”concludes the minister.
———————————–
Find the entire “8:30 am franceinfo” of Monday February 13, 2023: