France: second Social Conference will focus on the pension reform

Retirement, vocational training, future sectors, working conditions and public services will be the five themes on the agenda of the next Social Conference bringing together the government and the social partners on June 20-21.  But the thorny issue of pension reform, needed to reduce a funding deficit anticipated ay around €21 billion by 2020, will undeniably prevail.  Thus, this second edition is expected to be much more tense than the first meeting in July 2012.  Government and social partners will expose their – antipodal – views on the number of contribution years and statutory retirement age, among other things.  But the government wants to act quickly, with a new law being discussed in Parliament next fall.  The other bone of contention of this second Social Conference could be the reform of vocational training.  (Ref.  130326)