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The debate around pensions has been at the center of French politics since President Emmanuel Macron pushed through a 2023 reform that raised the minimum retirement age for most workers to 64. | Nicolas Guyonnet and Hans Lucas\/Getty Images<\/p>\nMomentum to suspend the reform, which remains unpopular, has grown in recent days after the collapse of a third French government in under a year. Parties representing a majority of lawmakers in the French National Assembly are now in favor of rolling back the reform. Former Prime Minister \u00c9lisabeth Borne \u2014 who pushed the legislation through in the face of fierce opposition \u2014 has said she now supports suspending the law.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we are experiencing in an accelerated and intense way is the result of political exhaustion,\u201d L\u00e9on said of the ongoing political crisis.<\/p>\n
L\u00e9on, whose union is generally perceived as moderate and open to compromise, said her wish was for the pensions debate to take place during the next presidential election scheduled for 2027 \u2014 and not to focus exclusively on the minimum retirement age.<\/p>\n
\u201c[The minimum age] doesn\u2019t address several issues: those who start working young, who have difficult jobs,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat many citizens tell us is that they feel they have fewer and fewer things they can actually influence.\u201d<\/p>\n
The CFDT supports a points-based pension system, whereby workers earn points for each year they work, with their pensions based on the total points they accumulate. Under France\u2019s current system, the pensions of most workers are calculated based on past income and are secured after they reach a minimum age having worked for at least 43 years.<\/p>\n
The debate around pensions has been at the center of French politics since President Emmanuel Macron pushed through a 2023 reform that raised the minimum retirement age for most workers to 64. | Nicolas Guyonnet and Hans Lucas\/Getty Images<\/p>\n
Such a reform was introduced under Macron\u2019s presidency by former Prime Minister \u00c9douard Philippe, with the CFDT\u2019s support, but was scrapped due to the Covid-19 pandemic. <\/p>\n