At least 1.1 million people protested on the streets of Paris and other French cities Thursday amid nationwide strikes against plans to raise the retirement age, but President Emmanuel Macron insisted he would press ahead with the proposed pension reforms.
Emboldened by the high turnout, French unions announced new strikes and protests on Jan. 31, vowing to try to get the government to back down on plans to raise the standard retirement age from 62 to 64.
Macron says the measure is needed to keep the pension system financially viable, but unions say it threatens hard-fought worker rights.
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