Pension reform: Michel Barnier mentions an improvement, who could benefit?

Barely arrived at Matignon, Michel Barnier has already mentioned the thorny issue of pension reform. If the new Prime Minister does not directly mention the legal age of 64, he nevertheless affirms that certain axes of the 2023 law could be the subject of adjustments.

No major changes but rather relaxations. Asked about TF1 On Friday, September 6, Michel Barnier specified that he will speak to the National Assembly and the Senate in the coming weeks on the issue of the 2023 pension reform, the main measure of which is to postpone the legal age from 62 to 64 years. “I will open the debate on improving this law for the most vulnerable people. I will do it with the social partners”announced the new Prime Minister. Although he did not clearly state that he would not touch the 64-year age limit, he did confirm it half-heartedly. “I want to initiate an improvement on this subject (pension reform, Editor’s note) but while respecting the budgetary framework”he promised.

For their part, several unions have already confirmed that they will take advantage of this open door to go to Matignon. “If these are cosmetic measures that are proposed to spruce up a reform and without being able to talk about everything, for us it’s a nowarns Dominique Corona, deputy general secretary of UNSA. For us, the most unfair measure is the postponement of the legal age. We must therefore be able to address the issue of resources and expenses.” The CFDT is of the same opinion. “If we say ‘we are reopening discussions’, at the very least we are suspending the reformsaid its general secretary Marylise Léon on Sunday, September 8, speaking to France Inter. It will be argument against argument, that we demonstrate that this is a profoundly unjust reform which affects women who have much more fragmented careers.”she pleaded.

A narrow path for the government

Even though the discussions have not yet opened, everyone seems to already be sticking to their positions. “I imagine that the Prime Minister will have to show that he wants to do something without calling into question or even freezing the 64-year age limit. This is a narrow path that could lead to marginal measures: making long career measures more coherent or trying to give the social partners the task of negotiating by sector on hardship.”analyzes an expert on these issues.

And if the unions are opposed as a whole to raising the legal age, this is not the only proposal that they could defend to the tenant of Matignon. “There are several subjects that can be improved, such as long careers, taking into account arduousness, women’s retirement.”lists Pascal Coton, vice-president of the CFTC. The union, which like the CFDT is calling for a freeze on the reform during the discussions, insists in particular on the possibility of re-establishing the hardship criteria removed by Emmanuel Macron at the start of his first five-year term (manual handling of loads, difficult postures, mechanical vibrations and chemical risks) in order to allow employees who carry out certain jobs in difficult conditions to retire early.

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Many suggestions for improvement

In the ranks of the Republicans (LR), the party from which Michel Barnier comes, it is also understood that this reform could be subject to certain adjustments.We need to think with social partners about how to improve end-of-career arrangements, transitions between employment and retirement, taking into account hardship and the long-career system.“, judges Pascale Gruny, senator (LR) of Aisne. But for these discussions, it is not a question of responding favorably to the left which wants a return to retirement at 60 years old”she warns straight away.

Her colleague in the National Assembly, Véronique Louwagie, also believes that it would be relevant to review blind spots of the latest reforms and spontaneously cites the profiles for which improvements would be possible: broken careers, women, the most modest retirees. All while systematically remaining within financial limits. “I hope that the introduction of a dose of collective capitalization can be debated. It is up to us, in order to guarantee future pensions, to ensure financial balance by taking into account demographic balance.”assures the deputy (LR) of Orne. The unions are warned.