French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Edouard Philippe convened with senior cabinet ministers late on Sunday to press ahead with the government's proposed pensions reforms despite four days of running protests that have crippled the country's public transport.

The country's labor unions, who claim the reforms will force many to work longer for a smaller retirement payout, began their protest on Thursday, and the mass strike stranded commuters, closed some schools and hit tourism in Paris and elsewhere.

Macron, a former investment banker, argues that the retirement overhaul will make a convoluted, out-dated pension system more fair and financially sustainable, uniting 42 different plans into one.

The government says it won't change the official retirement age of 62, but the new plan is expected to include financial conditions to encourage people to work longer as lifespans lengthen.

The new retirement plan will affect all French workers but the strikes involve primarily public sector workers, including train drivers, teachers and hospital employees.

France on strike — in pictures Walkout causes gridlock Many workers hoped to return to work on Friday. Some commuters opted to hire bicycles and scooters and others took their cars. This led to large traffic jams in French cities. There were nearly 300 kilometers of traffic jams in the Paris region.

France on strike — in pictures Transportation grinds to a halt 90% of high-speed trains and 70% of regional trains were cancelled on Friday, the French railway announced. The French civil aviation authority instructed airlines to reduce their Friday flight traffic from central airports to 20%.

France on strike — in pictures A fairer system? Public sector workers are unhappy about a reform that would see France transition to a points-based pension system from its current system that has 42 sector-specific pension schemes. Currently, rail workers, mariners and some ballet dancers can retire up to 10 years earlier than other workers. President Macron said that the proposed system would be fairer for everyone.

France on strike — in pictures Pensions debate without movement Macron's proposals follow a long tradition of French government pension reform proposals stretching for three decades. Each reform has been met with massive demonstrations and none of the changes has succeeded in simplifying the pension system.

France on strike — in pictures United behind a low retirement age Years of protests against pension reforms have successfully kept the retirement age low. In France, the pension age was raised to 62 years. This is among the lowest in OECD countries, despite being raised from 60 years in 2010 reforms. In Germany, retirement is at 67 years old.

France on strike — in pictures Stronger together? French union leaders are the driving force behind the nationwide strike — but they are not united. The CGT union is the most hardline. It rejects any pension reform proposals and said workers had blocked seven out of eight of the countries oil refineries. The CFDT union is more moderate and is open to the idea of a points-based system.

France on strike — in pictures Protests sparked While the majority of protesting consisted of peaceful marches, masked protesters also vandalized bus stops, smashed shop windows, and threw fireworks at police as demonstrators progressed through Paris on Thursday.

France on strike — in pictures Seeing red at pension proposals The so-called Yellow Vests are known for their direct approach to protesting and have said they would join the strikes. Authorities are bracing themselves for possible violence. The yellow-vest movement has swelled into anti-government and anti-inequality protests. Many see the general strike in France as protecting the country's social safety net — not just about preserving pensions.

France on strike — in pictures Riot police move in After peaceful protesting escalated to include rioting and damage to public and private property, security forces also intensified their tactics. Riot police charged crowds and fired tear gas to disperse violent demonstrators.

France on strike — in pictures Police and protesters clash in Paris Police clashed with protesters on Thursday in Nantes, Montpellier, Paris as well as other cities. Masked demonstrators started fires, smashed storefronts, and vandalized cars. Author: Kate Martyr



Jean-Paul Delevoye, Macron's coordinator for the pension reforms, is set to unveil the outcome of months-long consultations on Monday, followed by final details of the plan to be announced on Wednesday.

On the first day, some 800,000 people took to the streets in protest at the plan to introduce a single, points-based pension scheme for workers in all economic sectors.

Sunday saw more travel chaos, with most French trains at a standstill. Fourteen of Paris' subway lines were closed, with only two lines, using automated trains with no drivers, functioning. International train routes also suffered disruptions.

The three main rail unions calling for the action to be stepped up ahead of another general strike and mass protests called for Tuesday.

"In the coming days, we recommend avoiding public transport," said the website of the RATP public train, tram, bus and metro company used daily by some 10 million people in larger Paris to get to work.

Yellow vest activists joined the protests Saturday, adding retirement reform to their list of economic grievances in protests around the country. Police fired tear gas on rowdy protesters at largely peaceful marches through Paris and the western city of Nantes.

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bk/bw (AFP, AP)