As France Moves to Delay Retirement, Older Workers Are in a Quandary - The New York Times

During her 38-year vocation arsenic a income and selling manager, Christine Jagueneau seldom thought astir retirement. But erstwhile her occupation astatine a French concern institution was eliminated conscionable earlier her 59th day past February, the thought of tapping her pension took connected unexpected urgency.

Despite astir a twelve occupation interviews, she said, employers person suggested that she’s excessively aged to beryllium hired. She has conscionable capable savings to seashore to France’s existent status property of 62. But a authorities program unveiled past week that would marque the French enactment longer, to property 64, risks undermining her fiscal security, on with that of millions of older occupation seekers who person been efficaciously unopen retired of France’s labour market.

“We’re being told to enactment more,” said Ms. Jagueneau, who is anxious to enactment and feels dismayed to beryllium collecting unemployment for the archetypal clip successful her life. “But it’s astir intolerable for older radical to get jobs, due to the fact that companies successful France won’t prosecute them.”

As President Emmanuel Macron embarks connected an overhaul of France’s costly and generous pension strategy successful bid to sphere its finances, the conception of forcing radical to hold their status has incited outrage. Polls show that 4 retired of 5 radical reason raising that threshold, and the state is bracing for raucous nationwide strikes starting this week, arsenic labour unions and workers of each stripes protestation efforts to alteration a cherished totem that has agelong been viewed arsenic a governmental 3rd obstruction by the French.

“Retirement is considered sacred,” said Luc Rouban, a elder probe chap astatine the Center for Political Research astatine SciencesPo successful Paris. “For many, it’s similar reaching paradise.”

But the clash has besides thrown an uncomfortable spotlight connected 1 of the biggest under-the-radar problems successful France: the often-taboo taxable of property favoritism successful a state wherever millions of older occupation seekers privation to work, but find themselves unopen retired of the labour marketplace earlier they scope the authoritative status age.

In caller surveys by Indeed France, the country’s biggest online jobs board, a 4th of occupation applicants implicit 55 reported that employers had told them they were excessively aged to qualify. Four retired of 10 employers surveyed by Indeed said they didn’t mean to enlistee anyone older than 45. And a 4th of companies acknowledged they would prosecute a younger idiosyncratic astatine a little wage implicit an older candidate.

“Despite invaluable experience, older workers often find themselves shunned by recruiters, who person definite preconceptions astir age,” said Charles Chantala, a elder manager astatine Indeed. Those see concerns astir wellness and stamina, wage demands commensurate with experience, grooming successful the latest technologies and the thought that radical person to status mightiness instrumentality astir for lone a fewer years.

France’s employment levels amusement a steep driblet successful the fig of older radical holding jobs. Just implicit fractional of French radical betwixt 55 and 64 are employed, 1 of the lowest levels successful Europe, according to Eurostat. By property 60, less than a 3rd are moving — a small little than fractional the complaint recovered successful Germany and successful the Nordic countries.

Given France’s way record, labour unions — including ones that person been much unfastened to immoderate of Mr. Macron’s past reforms — person warned that lifting the status property volition simply make a bigger excavation of jobless older people.

“Half of seniors aren’t adjacent employed anymore by the existent status property of 62,” Laurent Berger, the caput of the mean French Democratic Confederation of Labor, told French radio. “First and foremost, we request to enactment connected keeping them successful work.”

Ms. Jagueneau has witnessed that occupation during her yearlong occupation search. Over a astir four-decade career, she climbed to elder absorption roles successful income and selling successful the French plastics industry.

When her occupation astatine a French institution successful the Indre portion of cardinal France was chopped past February, she wasn’t disquieted — astatine first. “I’d ne'er been connected unemployment, and I didn’t privation to be: I’m a fighter,” she said. “I thought I’d find enactment easy fixed my skills and experience.”

Ms. Jagueneau applied for much than 70 vacancies, galore of them listed connected online employment boards that necessitate applicants to benignant successful their property earlier submitting their exertion oregon résumé. She lowered her wage expectations and took a grooming people to update her integer selling skills.

But successful occupation interviews, she said, nary of that seemed to substance erstwhile her property came up. “As soon arsenic I started talking with recruiters, I was told, ‘Understand, madame: At 59 you’ll lone beryllium moving for a fewer years,’” she recalled. “Employers either enactment my C.V. to the side, oregon nicely but firmly closed the doorway successful my face.”

Such experiences aren’t antithetic for radical successful France implicit the property of 55, said Mr. Rouban, of SciencesPo. “It’s not similar the United States, wherever it’s easier to find enactment adjacent erstwhile you’re older,” helium said. “In France, you’re considered much rejectable, not arsenic profitable oregon productive and surely much costly than younger people. So a batch of older wage earners are rather acrophobic of this reform.”

Ms. Jagueneau is trying to flooded obstacles. She precocious created her ain start-up to counsel entrepreneurs connected however to marketplace and merchantability products effectively. But with 4 retired of 10 start-ups failing successful France, she’s disquieted astir what volition hap if hers buckles. Because she’s older than 55, her jobless benefits successful France’s generous unemployment strategy tin past up to 3 years. But they’ll tally retired earlier she could entree her pension arsenic Mr. Macron’s higher status threshold is phased in. After that, minimum French payment payments would footwear in.

But payment isn’t what she wants. “Telling radical to enactment longer without dealing with the existent taxable of the employability of seniors is hypocritical,” Ms. Jagueneau said. “I’m disquieted that we’re seeing the rupture of the French societal contract,” she added.

President Macron’s authorities has insisted that raising the status property would assistance support older radical successful the enactment force. After France’s status property was past raised successful 2010, to 62 from 60 (which was past the lowest successful Europe), millions of seniors stayed successful the labour marketplace longer, according to a French Treasury study.

But the displacement besides enlarged the excavation of seniors who became unemployed and economically inactive for reasons related to wellness oregon disability. And those implicit 55 were fractional arsenic apt to find caller employment arsenic younger and middle-aged workers, the survey showed.

To blunt absorption to the pension overhaul, Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne past week unveiled measures that she said would marque things fairer, including a astir 100 euro summation successful the minimum monthly pension, to €1,200 (about $1,300), and exemptions for those who commencement moving astatine younger ages successful arduous blue-collar jobs to discontinue earlier.

To assistance older workers enactment employed longer, the authorities would necessitate companies to acceptable up a publically disclosed “index” of their rates of elder employment, and supply accusation connected entree to grooming for those implicit 55. Ms. Borne estimated that 4 retired of 10 seniors would inactive beryllium capable to discontinue earlier 64 nether the caller reforms.

But without a superior alteration successful leader attitudes, those measures whitethorn beryllium conscionable a bandage connected a bigger problem, said Patrick Artus, elder economist astatine the French slope Natixis and an advisor to Mr. Macron’s government.

“We person a precise large dilemma successful France, which is the lack of companies’ willingness to support older employees,” Mr. Artus said. “If the result of this betterment is lone to person an summation successful seniors connected unemployment due to the fact that companies inactive won’t hire, past the betterment volition beryllium a failure.”

Tom Nouvian contributed reporting.