The strike — now the longest such transport stoppage since the mid 1980s — is proving a key test of Macron’s ability to implement his vow to reform France after coming to power in 2017.
But Macron’s call for a “Christmas truce” during the strike went unheeded, and unions have vowed not to back down ahead of renewed talks with the government set for January 7. “This government isn’t listening at all, we need to put more pressure on them,” Thierry Defresne, a union official at French energy giant Total, told AFP.Macron’s speech comes a year after his first major attempt at damage control, when he used the traditional New Year’s address to announce 10 billion euros in financial relief to try to quell the fiery “yellow vest” anti-government protests.
The strike is now on course to exceed the longest transport strike in France, which lasted for 28 days in 1986 and early 1987. The RATP, which operates the Paris metro system, launched an investigation after an outcry over footage going viral on social media showing a female driver being harassed and booed as she defied a strike to start work on Monday.
Authorities have outlawed any “yellow vest” protests on the famed avenue for Tuesday night, and nearly 100,000 police officers will be on duty nationwide to try to prevent outbreaks of violence.The government has already conceded that some workers, like police and firefighters, would still be able to have early retirements under their “special regimes,” a system of legacy plans to compensate for especially strenuous jobs.