Labour Day protests and strikes take over France, Italy and Netherlands

Labour Day protests and strikes have taken over France, Italy and the Netherlands, with workers and labour unions demanding better government policies to safeguard their rights and meet their wage demands. French President Emmanuel Macron faced nationwide protests in the country, with demonstrators denouncing his pension reform, which saw the retirement age increasing from 62 to 64 in the country. The legislation also requires people to work 43 years to receive a full pension, among other changes to the system.

 

In Italy, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also faced demonstrations from labour unions who



called on her government to increase wages and reform the country’s tax policy. Meloni’s government is set to unveil a labour package on Monday amid the protests.

 

Labour Day protests also took over the Netherlands, which saw unions demanding higher wages.

Due to inflation, employees of the largest labour union in the Netherlands, FNV, had offered its employees a wage increase of 3 to 7 per cent this year, followed by a 5 per cent increase next year and automatic price compensation with a maximum of 5 per cent from 2025 on.