Strikes started again. They do not give up: Civil Disobedience action PHOTO/VIDEO

Strikes started again. They do not give up: Civil Disobedience action PHOTO/VIDEO

In France, train services were canceled, schools will not be open, and refineries have suspended energy supplies as workers declared a work stoppage, Reuters reported.

Unions again called on employees to take to the streets of French cities in large numbers.

During the first two days of demonstrations on January 19 and 31, more than a million citizens gathered across France, according to police data. The organizers, mainly trade unions, stated that there were two million people on each occasion. The results of the polls show that the French, compared to pensioners from other OECD member countries, spend the longest period of time in retirement, which is a privilege that the majority in France does not want to give up.

French Labor Minister Olivier Dassault rejected opposition accusations that the government was in denial about the scale of street protests that took place across the country last month and reiterated that change was needed.

"The pension system of France is a loser and if we care about that system, we must save it," Minister Dassault said in an interview with RMC radio.

Philippe Martínez, leader of the left-wing CGT union, warned that President Macron was playing a "dangerous game" by introducing deeply unpopular pension reform at a time when the French are facing high inflation. On Monday, the debate on the pension reform began in the parliament in chaos, because the government found itself in a direct conflict with the opposition, which is planning an obstruction.

During two weeks, MPs will consider about 20,000 amendments, of which 13,000 are proposed by the radical left.

If the lower house of parliament does not finish the debate on the amendments by February 17 at midnight, the text will still be able to pass to the Senate, the French authorities said earlier.