‘Arrogant and vindictive’ Macron under fire as rail workers threaten national strike

The French President’s government is pushing ahead with its plans to overhaul pension schemes, which involves scrapping rules allowing some state-employed rail workers to retire a decade early.

Mr Martinez pledged the day of national protest over plans to end rail workers’ early retirement would be a “success”.

He told French television channel France 3: “Mr Macron is trying to divide those who have very little.

“He is arrogant and vindictive. He struggles to listen to those who address him directly and ask him too many questions.

“Pensioners versus youths, rail workers versus farmers: he’s constantly driving the wedge between those who have very little and those who have nothing at all.”

During a heated exchange with an employee of the state-owned SNCF rail company on Saturday, Mr Macron said it would be “crazy” for new rail workers to have the same privileged status as they had 50 years ago because the nature of their work had changed and become less intense.

92 percent of SNCF’s 260,000 staff enjoy a so-called “special status,” meaning they have a job for life and can retire on a full pension as early as age 52, a decade before the pension age of 62.

SNCF workers have access to other perks, including reduced or free train rides for family members.

Mr Macron promised last September to overhaul France’s retirement system in order to create a single system for all and smooth out the differences between the pensions of state and private sector employees.

Earlier this month, the powerful CGT union called for a nationwide strike on March 22 to protest against the government’s plans to end rail workers’ privileged status and prevent the changes from being implemented “by force”.

Mr Martinez said: “The government is trying to push through the reform without entering into negotiations.”

A day of strikes to protest against Mr Macron’s plans to reform and downsize the public sector has also been planned for March 22.

Prime minister Edouard Philippe, for his part, confirmed on Monday that new SNCF employees would no longer have access to the company’s special perks and would be subjected to national labour laws.

Mr Martinez said the rail reform would be debated in parliament next month, but that the government would push the changes through by decree in the event of wide opposition.