Workers strike for right to stop working


THOUSANDS of French workers will take to the streets and shut down railways, schools and public services throughout the nation today, in a last-ditch bid to stop President Nicolas Sarkozy's plan to raise the retirement age to 62.

The national strike is the first in a series of demonstrations planned in Europe as workers rebel against the wave of austerity measures imposed to rein in burgeoning deficits by governments spooked by Greece's near default in the wake of the global financial crisis.

Although the French are able to retire much earlier than many of their European neighbours, the proposal - to be put to Parliament this month - has been greeted with outrage in a nation that has treasured stopping work at 60 for more than a quarter of a century.

Retirement at 60 was introduced by a Socialist government in 1983 and is seen as a right by French workers who have violently opposed the plan, even though it will not be implemented until 2018.

A minimum retirement age of 60 is well under the average of 64 in the OECD group of wealthy industrialised democracies, despite the French having one of the world's longest life expectancies.

French Labour Minister Eric Woerth proposes to overhaul the country's bloated pension structure with a pay-as-you-go model in a bid to discipline a system that is forecast to create annual deficits of €100 billion ($A140 billion) by 2050.

According to a poll, the strikes are supported by most French people, with 63 per cent of the 1023 surveyed by telephone supporting the action.

President Sarkozy has spent significant political capital on his push to overhaul the creaking pension system, a reform package that is likely to be his government's last big legislative program before he begins the campaign for re-election in 2012.

However, it has been a politically disastrous few months for the centre-right UMP as Mr Woerth, the minister charged with the pension changes, became embroiled in a series of damaging allegations of conflict of interest during a high-profile battle over the assets of France's richest woman, L'Oreal heiress Liliane Bettencourt.

President Sarkozy has stood by his minister in public and Mr Woerth denies any wrongdoing while he was the UMP's chief fund-raiser and his wife worked advising Ms Bettencourt on her fortune. But investigations continue.

The opposition Socialist party has also made much mileage out of the retirement proposals, pledging to overturn the reform as a central plank of its election policy should it win power in 2012.

President Sarkozy was the subject of another major protest on the weekend as the French left and human rights groups took to the streets to voice their opposition to his crackdown on Roma immigrants and the threat to remove citizenship from foreign-born criminals.

While polls appear to show public support for the crackdown on criminality, Mr Sarkozy's approval ratings have not risen in line and the unions are expected to seize on what is seen as a growing political weakness.

''Depending on how many come out on Tuesday, the government will advance or not advance this reform,'' said Francois Chereque, leader of the CFDT, a coalition of labour organisations.

■ London's 3.5 million Tube travellers face disruption today with as many as 10,000 of the subway's drivers, station staff and engineers staging the first of a series of 24-hour strikes over employment cuts. The walkout over 800 jobs and restricted hours for ticket offices follows the breakdown of talks last week. London Mayor Boris Johnson has called in 100 extra buses and a 500-berth boat that will carry 10,000 people a day on the River Thames to help commuters.

Well maybe there is something in  this I wonder.  Labor put the pension age up here in Australia from 65 to 67.  Looks like the people in France don't like their government, putting up the pension retirement age.   Is there something to learn from this.  Widespread strikes and protests.  Yes it looks like it.  (Leave the retirement pension age alone).  Lets put ours back to 65.  Even that is to high anyway, it should be 60 for everyone.      

does imcrookonit support work for anyone at all?

Quote:



No the French are lazy fkers who still believe the rest of us in the EU have to support their idiotic system and who are still embarrassed at the fact we had to bail them out twice in the last century from the Germans.

The French as a system to be hailed in high regard?

Even the French would laugh at that statement Imcrook.

Dsmithy70 wrote on Sep 7^th, 2010 at 10:53am:



I don't know, wouldn't remotely surprise me if they did.

A mate of mine from Paris shakes his head whenever he sees or hears of the news of their farmers and unions out in the streets.

He still blames them for the loss of the 2012 Olympic bid to London.

True story, the day the IOC Committee were to visit all the Paris sites for their bid, the Unions pulled their workers out on strike, blockaded main intersections and gridlocked the city.
The IOC Committee spent an afternoon in traffic, saw one site, went back to their hotel and can you imagine their view of Paris and French organisation??

France went from being the front runner to catching up in one day.

To quote my mate "How can we expect to move forward as a country if we are so insular and cannot see things need to change for Europe as a whole?"

We still produce too much food in Europe and have to dump it in the Atlantic.
Why? Because French farmers refuse to have their subsidies cut.
The unions back them all the way too.

Madness.

This is an email that's doing the rounds.

To whoever wins the election:

Dear Sir / Madam.
Let's put the seniors in jail and the criminals in a nursing home. This
way the seniors would have access to showers, hobbies and walks.
They'd receive unlimited free prescriptions, dental and medical treatment,
wheel chairs etc and they'd receive money instead of paying it out.
They would have constant video monitoring, so they could be helped
instantly, if they fell, or needed assistance.
Bedding would be washed twice a week, and all clothing would be ironed and
returned to them. A guard would check on them every 20 minutes and bring
their meals and snacks to their cell.
They would have family visits in a suite built for that purpose.
They would have access to a library, weight room, spiritual counselling,
pool and education.
Simple clothing, shoes, slippers, PJ's and legal aid would be free, on
request.
Private, secure rooms for all, with an exercise outdoor yard, with
gardens.
Each senior could have a PC a TV radio and daily phone calls.
There would be a board of directors to hear complaints, and the guards
would have a code of conduct that would be strictly adhered to.
The "criminals" would get cold food, be left all alone and unsupervised.
Lights off at 8pm, and showers once a week.
Live in a tiny room and pay $900.00 per month and have no hope of ever
getting out.
Justice for all we say.

... wrote on Sep 7^th, 2010 at 11:33am:


Their behaviour for the last 60 years to the United States and Britain, the two countries that bailed them out in 2 world wars and saved them from occupation has been anything other than grateful.

They blocked Britain's entry into the EEC, they caused chaos in NATO, they obstinately block us at the UN etc.

France does owe people some gratitude, they have just never shown it.

... wrote on Sep 7^th, 2010 at 11:42am:



France was under occupation.
British, Canadian and American troops waded onto their beaches and secured the country's freedom for them.

France, meanwhile, had capitulated to the Germans in 8 days.

In my opinion they do owe us some gratitude and thanks.
It'd be nice if they showed it instead of behaving as arrogantly and as obstinate as they do.