But why is the executive proposing a meeting with the trade unions at the start of next week if it refuses to discuss pensions? And why do the unions agree to go there since the executive does not want to talk about the angry subjects, in particular the postponement of the legal age of departure from 62 to 64? Is it, according to the somewhat absurd expression of Franck Riester, the Minister Delegate for Relations with Parliament, to address “the subjects on which we agree”? In this case, the meeting would have little meaning. In reality, in this funny race of speed started at the beginning of the year with the presentation of the bill, the moment is critical. No one can afford to simply stick to their guns.
In the coming days, both the unions and the executive will walk on a narrow path. If the subject were not so serious and the situation so tense, one could think of a children’s game in which everyone pulls on a piece of rope and the first to let go (or who pulls too hard) falls and loses. Everyone has an interest in showing that they are open and ready to discuss so as not to risk being accused of stubbornness and immobility, without renouncing any of the measures on which they are basing themselves. been boiling for weeks. With, in mind, the perspective of the decision of the Constitutional Council of April 14, the content of which no one can predict but which everyone hopes in his favor.
One thing is certain, Laurent Berger of the CFDT cannot be blamed for not having tried to reconnect with the executive in recent weeks. Inter-union letter to Emmanuel Macron to request a meeting, proposal to suspend the reform while discussing, offer of mediation to resume dialogue… He will have tried everything. Without success. And yet, Tuesday, March 28, in the evening, at the end of the tenth day of mobilization, the leader of the CFDT announced on television that the inter-union would go to the meeting proposed by Elisabeth Borne at the beginning of next week. A decision that may seem surprising when the executive keeps saying that pensions will not be on the menu.
The urgency of the calendar
But Laurent Berger knows that it is urgent to break the deadlock. First because after the success of the mobilization of Thursday, March 23, that of Tuesday marked time. Same observation of erosion in the sectors where the strike was retained as a mode of action. The Parisian garbage collectors announced on Tuesday the suspension of their movement. And among railway workers, the number of strike days is beginning to accumulate and weigh on pay slips. Maintaining, under these conditions, a high level of mobilization for more than two weeks until the decision of the Constitutional Council is almost impossible. Especially since from April 8, spring vacation begins. In the unions, everyone knows that once people feel that the game is lost, it is very difficult to bring them out in the street.
Then, the first fracture lines appear in the inter-union. They are likely to widen with the failure of the strategy implemented until then of pressure on the executive by large days of demonstrations. Tuesday, at the CGT congress, Philippe Martinez was outvoted on his balance sheet by activists who criticized him in particular for having approved the mediation proposal issued the same morning by Laurent Berger. And the tension should not fall as the appointment of the new secretary general approaches, the subject of a bitter battle. The CGT is not the only one to be jostled by its most radical elements. Within the intersyndicale, organizations like Solidaires are now tempted to call for more offensive modes of action. For now, the alliance is holding and has managed to agree on a new date, April 6. But she is far away and until then, anything can happen.
By accepting the meeting at Matignon, Laurent Berger takes the risk of breaking up the inter-union, but he hopes to persuade the government to make a gesture in his favor by showing his determination. Despite the apparent inflexibility of the executive, discreet contacts have taken place to try to find a way out. It is hard to imagine the power having convened a meeting without a few ideas in reserve. He knows he has everything to lose by maintaining a completely closed door strategy. Admittedly, the violence was less in the processions on Tuesday than in those of the previous week, but what will happen if a major incident occurs? Similarly, if the Constitutional Council rejects too many provisions in its text (not to mention all of them), not having completely broken with the reformist unions will allow it to put the work back on the job more easily. Not to mention the possibility of a shared initiative referendum which, if validated by the wise men of rue Montpensier, could shake up the timetable for implementing the reform and breathe new life into the unions.
So, what will they talk about during this meeting? The trade unions – and especially the CFDT – will not agree to discuss anything except pensions, except to discredit themselves or to break up an already torn inter-union. Laurent Berger warned: “if they tell me: you can’t talk about it (…) they will leave the room or we will leave”. The government, for its part, cannot radically renounce the age of 64 without giving the impression of a huge setback. Therefore, the meeting could look like a useless shadow theater. In reality, she will have at least one virtue. Suspend hostilities for a week and bring everyone closer to April 14 and the decision of the Constitutional Council. Meager victory? Certainly. But in these times of deep disagreements, procrastinating without getting angry already seems like a feat.