EVENTS MAY 1ST. On the occasion of Labor Day, demonstrations will take place in France on May 1, 2023. A day that could be “historic” with a new demonstration of opposition to pension reform.
Labor Day will have a very special flavor this year. Less than three weeks after the promulgation of the pension reform, May 1, 2023 is approaching in an atmosphere where hostility to the bill has not subsided across the country. In recent days, each trip by the President of the Republic or his ministers has been accompanied by a gathering of opponents who have come to make noise and tell Emmanuel Macron and his government their opposition to the postponement of the legal retirement age. 62 to 64 years old. If between mid-January and mid-April, the unions multiplied the calls for strikes and the days of demonstrations – with various participations – nothing has been organized since the decision of the Constitutional Council. Question of finances, first, for the protesters deprived of pay for each day of strike, but also of weariness in front of mobilizations remained in vain and an inflexible government.
May 1, a public holiday, is therefore an opportunity for the CGT, CFDT, FO and the other trade unions to take to the streets again, banners in hand, slogans prepared, to remind us that the protest is still there. . To the point that for the Territorial Intelligence services, it will be a “historic day” in terms of mobilization, “in an avenging spirit” as it was written in a note relayed by BFM TV.
In Paris, the route of the demonstration on May 1, 2023 is not a surprise. It is indeed a completely traditional route that has been announced since the meeting is fixed at Place de la République. The demonstrators will then march to Place de la Nation, even if the list of boulevards taken to reach the finish has not yet been definitively decided. Will a hook be made by Bastille?
At this stage, just under 150 events have already been announced in France for May 1, 2023. Parades are planned in all major cities, but not only. Here is the list of the main processions:
This year, the May Day demonstrations are expected to bring together many more people than in previous years. Intelligence expects a mobilization of 80,000 to 100,000 people in Paris alone, almost the equivalent of the total number of demonstrators across the country in previous years. In 2022, between 116,500 (Ministry) and 210,000 demonstrators marched in France; compared to 106,000 to 170,000 in 2021 or 164,000 to 310,000 in 2019.
