January 2020

17Jan

French unions vow to stand firm as pension strike softens

Striking workers poured into streets across France Thursday for a sixth day of demonstrations against a pensions overhaul, putting up a show of defiance after Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said the historic transport stoppage "has gone on for too long". The rallies came on the 43rd day of a strike that again snarled train and metro traffic and caused misery for millions of commuters in Paris especially. "It's never too late to make a government back down," Philippe Martinez...

January 17, 2020
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17Jan

Piñera’s proposal fuels debate on low pensions in Chile

The controversy over low pensions in Chile, the most serious problem identified by the protesting social movement, has increased after President Sebastian Piñera announced changes to the country's pension system. The Chilean president announced on Wednesday evening that he would submit this week a bill to Congress seeking to improve all pensions and, especially, those of women, the middle class and dependent elderly. Piñera said this bill represents a 'structural change,' with a system based on State, worker and...

January 17, 2020
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16Jan

Chile’s Pinera proposes reform of pension system that has fueled protests

Chilean President Sebastian Pinera said on Wednesday that he will send a bill to Congress this week to reform the country’s pension system, which leaves many retirees living in poverty and has been one of the main complaints of protesters in months of demonstrations. Read Also Piñera’s proposal fuels debate on low pensions in Chile In a radio and television broadcast, Pinera said he will propose a 6% increase in the pension contribution per worker. Chile’s pension system is a...

January 16, 2020
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16Jan

Ghana. Approval for SSNIT pension reforms expected shortly

Discussions and consultations concerning a proposal put forward by the external Actuaries on the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) scheme who recommended a 19.2 percent contribution rate to replace the existing 11 percent rate being implemented are expected to be concluded early this year. The move is part of a number of amendments and reforms that are being considered for implementation in the National Pension Act, 2008 (Act 766) by sector Administrators – National Pension Regulatory Authority...

January 16, 2020
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15Jan

Strike against pension reform not to have severe impact on French economy: minister

Rolling train and metro stoppages and nationwide street rallies would not pose serious challenge to France's economy which has preserved its attractiveness despite a social tense climate, French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Tuesday. Asked by CNews television whether growth of the eurozone's second key powerhouse would be affected by unions' industrial action to oppose a pension overhaul, Le Maire said: "I don't think the strike will cost France dear." "I don't think that it...

January 15, 2020
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13Jan

France. French transport strike drags on despite government compromise on pensions

A crippling French transport strike dragged into its 39th day on Sunday despite the government’s offer to withdraw the most contested measure of the pension reform plans that sparked the protest. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said Saturday he would drop plans to increase the official retirement age to 64 from 62 in an effort to end a strike which has paralyzed Paris and its suburbs, with bus, train and metro services all badly disrupted. “I am willing to withdraw...

January 13, 2020
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13Jan

Macron Scraps Proposal to Raise Retirement Age in France

Faced with an unrelenting protest over proposed changes in France’s generous pension system, officials withdraw a move to raise the full-benefit retirement age to 64 from the present 62. Read Also France. French transport strike drags on despite government compromise on pensions With tens of thousands of anti-government demonstrators once again coursing through the streets of Paris and other cities and clouds of tear gas and smashed store windows punctuating the urban landscape, the French government made a major concession on...

January 13, 2020
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09Jan

Nationwide protest in France over pensions as talks continue

Rail workers, teachers, doctors, lawyers and others joined a nationwide day of protests and strikes Thursday to denounce French President Emmanuel Macron’s plans to overhaul the pension system. As the government and unions pushed on with crucial negotiations about the changes, street protests were staged in Paris and other French cities, with railway strikes entering their sixth week. Read Also Critical week in frances pension reform protests The Eiffel Tower was shut as employees joined the protest movement. Paris metro traffic was...

January 9, 2020
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07Jan

French pension talks resume as govt seeks to end standoff

French officials prepared to restart talks with unions Tuesday over a pension overhaul that has sparked the country's longest transport strikes in decades, which labour leaders say could force millions of people to retire later than they thought. Public support appears to be shifting in the government's favour, with just 44 percent backing the strike in an Ifop poll released Sunday, down seven points from the previous survey on December 19-20. The reform would eliminate 42 separate pension schemes...

January 7, 2020
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06Jan

Critical week in France’s pension reform protests

The month-long stand-off between the government and France's striking transport workers has entered a critical week, with talks set to resume on Tuesday, and further national protests in store. The first Council of Ministers' meeting was taking place on Monday, as commuters braced for a difficult return to work after the Christmas break. The ongoing pension reform protests are certain to top the agenda, with strike calls launched on Monday by nurses and physiotherapists' unions. An Air France pilots...

January 6, 2020
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