Emmanuel Macron’s reform plans are set to trigger widespread chaos in France, with the country’s travel network expected to grind to a standstill for three months.
While the French president has become a leading figure in the European Union, his ambitious reform plans have sparked a domestic backlash.
Yesterday, French rail unions unveiled plans to strike two days out of five for three months starting in April in protest against the state rail operator.
Mr Macron’s train proposals include ending the jobs-for-life status and early retirement age of national rail workers.
Guillaume Pepy, head of the state rail, said that more than 4.5 million people will be affected by the proposed strikes.
Earlier in the week, Mr Macron faced the fury of pensioners, who claimed the French leader had “bled them dry” by raising taxes on the elderly.
This latest protest has shocked the French government since the majority of older citizens supported Mr Macron’s presidential bid last year.
Several political analysts point to this support drop as a reason why Mr Macron’s En Marche party suffered a surprise by-election defeat last month.
Thousands of retired French citizens took to the streets in Paris and other cities to voice their anger
Michel Salingue of the FGR-FP union said: “We are not the gilded generation. We’ve contributed more than our share already.”
Mado Gurard, a 75-year-old who voted for Macron last May, added: ““We’ve had enough of being bled dry the whole time. Us retired people, we vote. He has to listen to us.”
Mr Macron fired back at the protesters, saying: “If I don’t make an effort for those who work, there’ll be nobody left to pay for your pension.
“We have lowered income taxes by 30 percent so that working people can pay for your pensions.”
The French President has also recently faced protests from truckers, students and farmers.