From “contempt” and “denial”, a President of the Republic “on the Moon”, who “refuses to see the social reality” … In unison, the unions reacted strongly on Wednesday to the words of the President of the Republic, interviewed on TF1 and France 2.
Emmanuel Macron regretted “that no union force has proposed a compromise”, particularly targeting the CFDT. He also castigated the “factious”, the “violence”, and seemed to minimize the “disputes”, affirming that “these disputes (…) with each pension reform, we have them and sometimes in much higher numbers”.
These remarks are “futage of the mouth” and “contempt” vis-à-vis the “millions of people who demonstrate”, reacted the secretary general of the CGT, Philippe Martinez.
“It’s lunar this interview. It’s: everything is fine, I’m doing everything well, nothing is happening in the street”, he denounced in front of journalists in Tours.
Mr. Martinez also judged “properly scandalous” to “compare the situation in France with what happened in the United States” following the election of Joe Biden and “the invasion of the Capitol by hordes of rather far-right Americans.
“It’s a provocation,” added François Hommeril, the boss of the executives’ union, who said he was generally “very shocked” by the interview with the head of state.
“I can’t take these lessons of responsibility anymore,” said the president of the CFE-CGC. Referring to a “scratched record”, he added that Emmanuel Macron was “as if nothing had happened for two months, as if the Earth had stopped turning”.
“He went to the moon, maybe he was with Thomas Pesquet, I don’t know, somewhere in the space shuttle…”, he gritted.
The secretary general of the CFDT Laurent Berger accused him of the President of the Republic of “denial” and “lie”: “on the fact that there would be responsibility only in one camp, on the fact that the CFDT would have proposed to its congress an increase in the duration of contribution, (…) on the fact that one (would not have) made counter-proposals “.
“Enough talk? We want the withdrawal”, tweeted the secretary general of Unsa, Laurent Escure, lapidary.
The president of the CFTC, Cyril Chabanier, denounced on the same social network an “above-ground” speech. “We were expecting a session of self-criticism and questioning of the method, we were treated to a satisfaction embellished with criticism of the unions, the opposition, and generally of all those who would be against the reform. The president persists in isolating himself”, he lambasted.
“Treating with contempt the formidable mobilization initiated since January 19, the President of the Republic has confirmed a hard-line attitude on pension reform”, for his part denounced FO in a press release.
The FSU pointed to an “irresponsible and provocative” intervention, while Solidaires accused the president of having chosen “leap forward”.
The unions have coolly welcomed the president’s proposal to re-engage in a dialogue with the social partners on work in the coming weeks, Laurent Berger speaking of “empty words”.
“There is a delay of decency. There is even decency in the way you address your interlocutors,” he told AFP.
“I think that to regain confidence, if confidence there was one day, (..) three weeks it will be short”, for his part affirmed Mr. Martinez.
03/22/2023 17:34:09 – Paris (AFP) – © 2023 AFP