French fresh strike disrupts trains over pension overhaul

PARIS: Trains were disrupted across France on Tuesday as labour unions went on strike over plans to overhaul the country´s pension system, which critics say will push back the retirement age for millions of people.

The move came after Paris public transport was paralysed by a massive strike on September 13, and subsequent protests by lawyers, nurses and airline pilots. Some 150 rallies are planned across France on Tuesday under the banner "Jobs, wages, public services, pensions: Stop the social decline!" Hundreds of trains were cancelled, with the SNCF rail operator expecting just two out of five intercity trains to run, and three of five regional TER lines.

Most high-speed TGV trains were operating, but the main commuter RER lines serving the Paris region were hit hard, leading to traffic jams of more than 475 kilometres during the morning rush hour. In some cities like Nice, all bus and tram services were halted.

"We already retire too late, when we´re exhausted," said Marie-Paule Dano, a 66-year-old demonstrating in the central French city of Clermont-Ferrand. "After working 44 years, our pensions are pitiful, and some have to take care of parents or sometimes children who are studying longer and longer," she said.

President Emmanuel Macron plans to implement a universal pension system that would do away with the more advantageous plans enjoyed by workers in a range of sectors, including state transport and utility companies.

Metro workers, for example, say the reforms would force them to work longer by removing long-held rights to early retirement, secured decades ago to compensate for long hours spent working underground.