France cuts pension age for some despite EU unease

[Catherina]

Source: SwissInfo, Reuters

Jun 6, 2012 - 20:11
France cuts pension age for some despite EU unease

PARIS (Reuters) - France's new left-wing government announced on Wednesday a cut in the pension age to 60 for some long-time workers, carrying out an election pledge in the face of economic troubles and an EU warning that it would overburden an already creaking social welfare system.

Socialist President Francois Hollande, who took power in mid-May on a pro-growth ticket for the economy, had promised a partial rollback of his predecessor Nicolas Sarkozy's pension reform if he won.

...

The reform will also create vacancies at a time when unemployment is at its highest level this century.

...

Sarkozy's pension reform, adopted despite street protests by millions in 2010, was welcomed by financial markets and credit ratings agencies concerned about France's ability to cut its debt and deficit levels in the face of stagnant economic growth.

Read more: http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/news/international/France_cuts_pension_age_for_some_despite_EU_unease.html?cid=32851790

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I like the PM's quote "Promise made, promise met"

[dipsydoodle]

1. "Promise made, promise met"

Makes a change.

[Catherina]

3. Ohai

I'm sorry I've been so slack communicating lately. I'll rectify that!

[dipsydoodle]

5. I only reiterated what you'd said above

Wasn't having a pop at you - honest.

My turn to write anyway.

[gadjitfreek]

2. As opposed to what they do in this country

Fire your ass before you can collect a pension and hire someone inexperienced for a fraction of your salary, rendering you unhirable again.

[Catherina]

4. I'm not looking forward to seeing what our country looks like in 20 years

not unless it drastically changes courses.

Pensions? What pensions? How are millions of non-professional people with no 401ks going to retire?

[gadjitfreek]

7. An old James Bond...

"I shuppose you exschpect me to retire?"
"No, Mr. Bond...I expect you to DIE!"

-Auric Goldfinger, the original 1 Percenter

[DaveJ]

8. Lately even having a 401k doesn't help

My 401k has mainly gone down, it's like I'm just donating money to the 1% out of every check, like an idiot, and we have no matching.

My parents funds have done ok though because they never had 401k's and invested in other things.

It's absurd trusting our meager retirements to wallstreet. But I don't know what else to do.

[Fearless]

12. Don't forget forcing you to retire and then taking

Away your pension or at best "restructuring" it.

[Spirochete]

9. Uh-oh...

Does that mean we'll be going back to "freedom fries" again here?

[Starry Messenger]

10. k&r

[DonCoquixote]

11. Good for you Mr. Hollande

Tell Schutzstaffel Andrea Merkel and her new Fourth Reich EU to go to Hell.

[NorthCarolina]

13. Campaign promise kept???

WTF is that about...silly politicians, don't they know Liberal ideas are for campaign rhetoric ONLY, not for actual legislation. FRANCE IS DOOMED I TELL YA...DOOMED!!!!!

[suffragette]

14. Interesting headline choice by media. Could have been "Hollande returns pension age to 60"

or "Hollande rolls back Sarkozy's pension age increase"

They do bring up that point later, but it's interesting that most of the headlines don't use that fact in the headline itself.


Very glad to see Hollande keeping his campaign promises so well and so promptly and love the quote about that hammering the point home.