--- description: French President Emmanuel Macron invoked article 49.3 of the French constitution to push through pension reform, raising the retirement age. title: Protests Sweep France as Macron Forces Pension Reform image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt24eb4794c4b64ca7/698a3b36cabb1d4f7ee5139f/france-pension-protests-01.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [France](/tag/france/) ## France Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Protests Sweep France After Pension Reform Is Forced Through by Macron  by [Tara Law](/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 11, 2023 8:39 PM CUTPublished: Mar 16, 2023 4:36 PM CUT  A protestor holds an umbrella to protect from teargas during a demonstration on the 8th day of strikes and protests across the country against the government's proposed pensions overhaul, in Nantes, France, on March 15. A protestor holds an umbrella to protect from teargas during a demonstration on the 8th day of strikes and protests across the country against the government's proposed pensions overhaul, in Nantes, France, on March 15.Loic Venance—AFP/Getty Images  by [Tara Law](/author/tara-law/)  ## Tara Law Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Updated: Dec 11, 2023 8:39 PM CUTPublished: Mar 16, 2023 4:36 PM CUT Protesters took to the streets across the country after French President Emmanuel Macron’s cabinet invoked a constitutional article to circumvent a parliamentary vote and increase the retirement age by two years, to 64. About 10,000 protesters gathered in Paris at the Place de la Concorde by the National Assembly in a largely peaceful protest following the decision on Thursday, the New York _Times_ [reported](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/17/world/europe/france-pension-macron.html "undefined"). The protests grew more violent overnight, as protesters lobbed cobblestones, burned cars, and police launched water canons and tear gas, reports say. Over 300 people were arrested in the protests, mainly in Paris, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said in a radio interview on [March 17](https://www.rtl.fr/actu/politique/invite-rtl-reforme-des-retraites-gerald-darmanin-annonce-310-interpellations-hier-en-france-7900245756 "undefined"). “Opposition is legitimate, protests are legitimate but causing mayhem is not,” said Darmanin, according to [_Reuters_](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/pressure-mounts-macron-after-violent-unrest-over-pensions-2023-03-17/ "undefined")_._  Accumulation of rubbish in the streets of the capital, on the ninth day of the garbage collectors strike against the pension reform, on March 14. Marie Magnin—Hans Lucas/Redux The outcry came after Macron ordered Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne to invoke 49.3, a provision of the French constitution, to pass a controversial pension reform plan before the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, was scheduled to vote on the legislation, according to the [Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/france-retirement-age-strikes-macron-garbage-07455d88d10bf7ae623043e4d05090de "undefined"). The Senate, which has a conservative majority, had [adopted](https://twitter.com/Senat/status/1636304003599302659 "undefined") the bill in a 194 to 114 vote on Thursday, but reports had found that it was short of a majority in the Assembly, _Le Monde_ [reported](https://www.lemonde.fr/en/politics/article/2023/03/16/macron-opts-to-force-pension-bill-through-assemblee-with-no-vote%5F6019608%5F5.html "undefined"). The decision is expected to lead to a no-confidence motion for Macron’s government, France 24 [reported](https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230316-%F0%9F%94%B4-french-government-to-invoke-article-49-3-executive-privilege-to-push-through-pension-reform-without-parliamentary-vote-govt-sources "undefined"). “When a president has no majority in the country, no majority in the National Assembly, he must withdraw his bill,” said Olivier Faure, the head of the Socialist party, according to [France 24](https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230316-%F0%9F%94%B4-french-government-to-invoke-article-49-3-executive-privilege-to-push-through-pension-reform-without-parliamentary-vote-govt-sources "undefined"). Lawmakers booed, sang La Marseillaise national anthem, and brandished posters reading “It’s no!” as Borne announced the decision in parliament. “We cannot bet on the future of our pensions and this reform is necessary,” French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne [said](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64967516 "undefined"). **Read More:**[ _What to Know About the Retirement Age Protests in France_](https://time.com/6248668/paris-france-protests-retirement-age/ "undefined") Provision 49.3 has been used [dozens of times](https://www.lemonde.fr/les-decodeurs/article/2022/10/19/article-49-3-comment-ca-marche-combien-de-fois-a-t-il-ete-utilise-durant-la-ve-republique%5F6146430%5F4355770.html "undefined") since its creation in 1958, although a constitutional reform implemented in 2008 limited its use to a single law per parliamentary session, in addition to finance and social security bills. [President Emmanuel Macron](https://time.com/6189346/french-legislative-elections-macron-le-pen-melenchon/ "undefined") has said the current age of retirement is unsustainable. In France, where the average [life expectancy is now 82](https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN?locations=FR "undefined"), people spend about 25 years in retirement, according to [OECD data](https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?QueryId=111939 "undefined") from 2021\. Official [projections](https://www.cor-retraites.fr/sites/default/files/2022-12/RA%5FCOR2022%20def.pdf "undefined") have found that the ratio of workers to retirees is expected to drop to 1.2 in 2070, down from 2.1 in 2000 and 1.7 in 2020. “People know that yes, on average, you have to work a little longer, all of them, because otherwise we won’t be able to finance our pensions properly,” Macron [said in February](https://apnews.com/article/france-government-macron-paris-3a83a431cda24315e121e300cb5c89da "undefined"), per the Associated Press. Polling has also indicated the vast majority of French people oppose raising the retirement age. An Elabe poll [released](https://elabe.fr/les-francais-et-la-retraite "undefined") on March 31 found that 70% opposed an increase. [Experts say](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/07/world/europe/france-retirement-macron.html?name=styln-france-strike®ion=TOP%5FBANNER&block=storyline%5Fmenu%5Frecirc&action=click&pgtype=Article&variant=undefined "undefined") that it is in part because cherishing life after retirement is deeply embedded in French culture, and that it is seen as a necessary (and earned) reprieve after a life of hard work. Opposition to the bill has led to strikes that have shuttered schools, halted public transportation, and left [piles of trash](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/15/world/europe/garbage-strike-france-pension-retirement-macron.html "undefined") around the Eiffel tower. Last week, protests swelled with over a million participants—a record, according to the [New York _Times_](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/07/world/europe/macron-france-retirement-protests.html "undefined")_._ The protests are [expected](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/pressure-mounts-macron-after-violent-unrest-over-pensions-2023-03-17/ "undefined") to continue through the weekend. Protesters from the labor union CGT temporarily [blocked](https://twitter.com/UdCgtParis/status/1636616209880719361?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1636616209880719361%7Ctwgr%5E0e1595043f29b543e2e755c83119f68d57299603%7Ctwcon%5Es1%5F&ref%5Furl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bfmtv.com%2Fparis%2Freforme-des-retraites-la-cgt-paris-bloque-le-peripherique-a-porte-de-clignancourt%5FAN-202303170098.html "undefined") Paris’ périphérique, a highway circling the city, on Friday. Teachers unions have also called for strikes, which may disrupt the Baccalaureate high school exams, _Reuters_ [reported](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/pressure-mounts-macron-after-violent-unrest-over-pensions-2023-03-17/ "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6263754/amid-protests-france-pushes-through-bill-to-raise-retirement-age-without-parliamentary-vote/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6263754/amid-protests-france-pushes-through-bill-to-raise-retirement-age-without-parliamentary-vote/"},"headline":"Protests Sweep France After Pension Reform Is Forced Through by Macron","datePublished":"2023-03-16T16:36:57.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-11T20:39:08.000Z","description":"Amid weeks of protest, President Macron invoked an article to push through pension reform without a parliamentary vote.","url":"https://time.com/6263754/amid-protests-france-pushes-through-bill-to-raise-retirement-age-without-parliamentary-vote/","keywords":["France","News Team"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt24eb4794c4b64ca7/698a3b36cabb1d4f7ee5139f/france-pension-protests-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tara Law","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tara-law/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt24eb4794c4b64ca7/698a3b36cabb1d4f7ee5139f/france-pension-protests-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"france-pension-protests-01","caption":"A protestor holds an umbrella to protect from teargas during a demonstration on the 8th day of strikes and protests across the country against the government's proposed pensions overhaul, in Nantes, France, on March 15.","creditText":"Loic Venance—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/france/","name":"France"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6263754/amid-protests-france-pushes-through-bill-to-raise-retirement-age-without-parliamentary-vote/","name":"Protests Sweep France After Pension Reform Is Forced Through by Macron"}}]}] ```