French workers will begin contributing to a new public-pension system in 2025 under President Emmanuel Macron's plan to update the country's complex and generous existing arrangements.
After days of strikes disrupting life across the country, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe promised minimum full benefits of €1,000 ($1,100) a month and said that the age for receiving a full pension will rise to 64 from 62 in 2027 — later than some commentators had predicted. Mr. Philippe said the legislation will go to lawmakers in February and he aims to have the bill passed by the end of next year.
"I hear the concerns expressed over recent days. I understand them," Mr. Philippe said as he set out the plan at an event in Paris. "We may disagree on some points, but the ambition is for a universal system with social justice. There is no hidden agenda."
Labor unions have been staging protests since Dec. 5 in an effort to force the president to dial back his plans. While the government has been making conciliatory noises in a bid to avoid a total blockade of transport, schools and other public services, pushing through a central election pledge is an important political test for 41-year-old Mr. Macron.
The reform aims to ensure pension payments don't place a burden on the state budget and that all contributors will have the same entitlements — ending the special regimes that let some workers retire in their early 50s. Some economists and many low-paid workers have challenged the president's assertion that the new plan will mean equal rights for everyone while unions have planned further demonstrations Thursday and Dec. 17.
Here are the main details of the plan:
- One pension system instead of 42 currently.
- Benefits indexed to wages, not inflation.
- New regime applies to everyone born from the start of 1975.
- Legal retirement age unchanged at 62, full benefits not available until age 64.
- Retirement age rises to 64 from 2027.
- Minimum pension of €1,000 a month from 2022 for those who worked a full career.
