Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Paris on Monday, one day after Emmanuel Macron was elected French president in protest against his planned labour reforms.

The 39-year-old centrist has promised to transcend the traditional right-left political divide that has allowed vested interests to block fundamental economic reforms.

But Macron, a former banker, is a well-known target of left-wing protests.
Demonstrators, led by the powerful CGT trade union, said he was preparing to implement his “ultra-liberal policies”.

“We will be vigilant and we won’t accept that he continues the work he started when he was in power – it is to say, to destroy the labour code as he began to do, on this matter we won’t leave him alone,” said NGO employee Benjamin Fuche.

One of the protesters, Benjamin Fuche, said, “Well, we are here to show to president-elect Macron that we are not going to leave him in alone.

The 27-year-old NGO employee, said they would watch Macron closely to ensure he doesn’t implement the labour law.

“He announced that he will pass laws very quickly, notably on the labour law, so it’s an answer to these announcements, to show that we are present even if some people voted for him, even if we have voted for him, we will be vigilant and we won’t accept that he continues the work he started when he was in power – it is to say, to destroy the labour code as he began to do, on this matter we won’t leave him alone,” Fuche said.

During a two-year stint as economy minister he pushed through reforms deregulating Sunday working and introducing more competition to the legal profession and long-haul bus routes.

The “Macron law” sparked nation-wide protests and was opposed by unions and left-wingers in parliament, ultimately forced through by decree to avoid a government defeat.

Reuters