Macron reaffirms his intention to talk and the unions warn that the strike is prolonged

The last big day of protests against the pension reform in Paris has left more than 440 police officers and gendarmes injured and 457 people arrested on Thursday night. President Emmanuel Macron strongly condemned the violence and insisted that he was open to dialogue.

“I expressed our availability to advance on issues such as job burnout, the end of a career, reconversions, professional development, working conditions and remuneration in certain branches. And that is why I am available to the joint unions, if they wish to come to meet with me to make progress on all these issues”, he declared at a press conference after the meeting of leaders of the European Union held in Brussels.

Unions refuse to give up

The country’s main unions are calling for a strike in various sectors of the economy in protest of the pension reform adopted last Monday by Parliament, which delays the minimum retirement age by two years, to 64.

The cancellation of flights in France due to the controllers’ strike will last, at least, until next Wednesday, Civil Aviation said on Friday.

However, the situation seems to be improving in some sectors, such as fuel, with the forced reopening of the Normandy refinery, which guarantees the supply of fuel and kerosene to the Paris region.

Something similar happened in other oil deposits and the Donges refinery, in the east, which improves the situation of the gas stations, which had begun to feel fuel shortages in some regions.

As for garbage collection, two of the three incinerators in Paris have ended their stoppages and the other is being forcibly reopened by the authorities, which could put an end to the 10,000 tons of garbage that accumulates on the streets of the capital.

Rail traffic will improve somewhat over the weekend, although there is still no forecast for the start of the next one.