News Digest: Will This Be France’s Hottest Summer Ever (Plus, More Strikes!)

Yesterday (May 1^st) saw record numbers of protesters take to the streets for the Fete du Travail (Worker’s Day) to protest against Macron’s highly controversial pension reforms, which were last week approved by the Constitutional Council. Participants were estimated at 2.3 million by the unions, although the official government figures put the turn out around 782,000 – quite a large difference, although even the lower figure represents the highest turnout for May 1 protests since 2002.

Marches and demonstrations took place in cities nationwide, with incidents of violence by police and marchers making the headlines in Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, and some 540 people were arrested across the country. Although politicians and unions have widely condemned the violence, the strikes don’t look to be going away anytime soon, with French unions calling another national strike day for next Tuesday, May 2^nd.

As for the pension reforms, here’s what happens next: tomorrow (Wednesday, May 3^rd), the Constitutional Council will rule on a second request to hold a referendum on the pension reforms, followed by a motion against raising the retirement age that will be debated and voted on in parliament on June 8. However, neither of these events seem likely to prevent the reforms from passing into law, and the bill is set to come into force on September 1^st.

Météo France announced their predictions for the next few months’ weather in France, and it looks like the mercury is on the rise. Temperatures are set to be “warmer than normal” throughout all of France for May, June, and July, in fitting with Europe-wide trends for rising temperatures.

While this won’t be bad news for French residents and second-home owners hoping to make the most of May’s many holiday weekends (more on that below), a more worrying side effect is that 19 French departments have already been placed on drought alert. Spring water restrictions are now in place for the following departements, and residents should adhere to local guidelines regarding hosepipe and water usage: Ain, Alpes Maritimes, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Ardèche, Aude, Bouches-du-Rhône, Deux-Sèvres, Drôme, Gard, Haute-Saône, Hérault, Isère, Loiret, Oise, Pyrénées-Orientales, Var, Vaucluse, Vienne, and Yvelines. 

France’s minimum wage, or SMIC, has increased by 2.19% as of yesterday, May 1st, in line with inflation. The new minimum wage is now set at €11.52 per hour – increased from the previous €11.27 – which works out at €1,747.20 gross or €1,383.08 net per month.

The figures are not only of interest to those living and working in France but also to French visa applicants – the SMIC amount is the general reference point used to calculate the sufficient funds required for visa applicants.

(Speaking of French visas, if you missed last week’s visas & health insurance webinar, you can now watch the replay over on our YouTube channel here).

Don’t forget that next Monday (May 8^th) is another bank holiday or jour férié in France – the second of four (yes, four!) long weekends this May. VE Day marks the end of WWII in Europe, so expect remembrance parades and ceremonies to be held throughout France, as well as the inevitable surge of holiday weekend traffic on the motorways and around beaches, tourist resorts, and large cities.