2023-10-24 17:05:00
EDemonstrations by elderly people are rare. However, there were around a hundred who gathered on Tuesday on Boulevard des Invalides in Paris, and in several cities in France, to protest once morest the drop in their purchasing power and to demand a 10% increase in their pensions.
The “minimum” to compensate for inflation, according to the joint press release written by the nine trade union organizations which called for the demonstration. And almost double the 5.2% increase promised by the government for 1is next January, aligned with the official inflation rate.
“My life is no longer the same as it was five years ago,” explains Daniel, with a slight Southern accent. Despite a pension of around 1,800 euros per month, the sixty-year-old had to resolve to deprive himself. “I don’t go to the cinema anymore, tickets are 12 euros,” he explains. Naturalia is no longer possible either. For Christmas, every year, I put money aside for the kids, taking into account my reserves. And there, I started to tell them that I’m not going to be able to achieve the same effort as usual. It’s like that. I’m not the most unhappy, but it’s unpleasant to be here as a grandfather… In five years, my life has changed. »
“Everything has increased”
“The butcher has become unthinkable,” adds his friend Félix. The fishmonger, I’m not even talking regarding him… It’s not fair, following a lifetime of work, to not be able to live with dignity. It’s contempt for older people. »
In the small crowd gathered under CGT balloons, everyone begins, like them, by affirming that they are not the most to be pitied. Paris obliges, the majority undoubtedly earn a little more than the average retirement pension in France, which amounts to 1,509 euros gross per month, 1,955 for men and 1,401 for women. But, if some here seem a little better off, inflation is weighing on their purchasing power.
“I have around 2,000 euros per month and we can say that things are going well,” confides Françoise, a retired nurse, who came accompanied by her friend Marianne, a former health executive. But this is not true. I have to help my daughter who can’t get by with her minimum wage and her three children. And then I have rent, electricity, water, transportation, food, health expenses… Everything has increased. »
INSEE thus estimates the increase in the price of gas in two years at 80%. Pasta costs 37% more and fresh vegetables, 33%… Incompressible expenses, which weigh on the stock markets, beyond the average level of inflation.
The cost of access to care
Many also complain regarding the deterioration of public services, the reduction of which adds to their difficulties. While the National Assembly is currently studying the Social Security finance bill, the problem of access to care is omnipresent.
Despite the 150 euros that she pays each month to her mutual fund, Marianne, who suffers from a “polypathology, like many people here”, estimates her remaining costs at 1,500 euros per year, for example. The retiree had to resort to consulting non-approved specialists due to a lack of doctors available near her home. The deductible for some of its drugs has also increased. Result: these costs weigh considerably on your budget. This former healthcare professional has not given up on seeking treatment, unlike 45% of French people who, according to the barometer of September 2023 from Secours populaire, are going without certain care due to lack of resources.
More isolation
Travel and leisure are also restricted. Patrice, 78 years old, came by RER from his small house, 60 kilometers from Paris, because he was unable to pay for the fuel for his car. He also says he wants to make the most of his Navigo pass, the price of which has also increased by several euros in recent months.
“I retired twenty years ago,” says this former supervisor at La Poste. It wasn’t amazing, but I lived peacefully on my 1,600 euros per month. Now, with the price increase, it’s over. »
He also says that he is “not to be pitied”. He nevertheless blesses the abnormal mildness of this end of October. “I don’t heat my room,” he smiles. Fortunately for me, I’m not cold… And then the restaurant, the cinema, the theater… Before, I loved that. Now I look at the prices. »
Everyone in the crowd talks regarding the little hobbies they have given up. A widow, Josiane* spent the summer alone in her HLM in the 12th arrondissement. “I loved traveling,” she explains softly. In my life, I have gone a lot, and far away, to Africa, to South America… Now, it’s over. »
She also avoids going to supermarkets and prefers markets, only buying clothes when hers have holes. Over the course of the constraints, his social life also tightened. “It’s complicated,” she agrees. I won’t tell you regarding train tickets… Even with my senior card, it’s very expensive. So even going to see family is restricted. What will be left? »
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