PAME expresses its solidarity with the workers of France who are going on a National General Strike on January 19 against the Macron Government’s dirty attempt to increase the retirement age limit.

Workers of France, in your great struggle, in the great strike of 19 January you will not be alone. The workers of all countries, the unions fighting in every country, will be at your side in your just struggle because it is also our struggle.

In all countries, governments, regardless of their colours, in the service of the profits of the business groups, are trying by all means to abolish workers’ rights and achievements. Rights such as collective agreements, social security, pensions. Rights that are costs for the capitalists, but are life conquests of the workers.

The wealth produced by workers today is vast, more than at any other time in the history of mankind. Technology, science have made huge leaps to lead humanity forward and solve great problems. There are all the conditions for reducing working hours, increasing wages and improving the standard of living of workers.

But the policies that serve the business groups, the competition of the monopolies and the governments that serve them seek to sacrifice the lives and rights of workers for the profits of the capitalists. This policy leads the peoples to the huge wave of poverty, energy poverty, imperialist wars for control of markets, energy sources and spheres of influence.

The workers must not accept to be sacrificed for this inhuman system of exploitation. Today it is necessary to intensify the demanding struggle for the satisfaction of the modern needs of the workers, for increases in wages and pensions with a reduction of the retirement age limit and daily working time.

The experience of the recent great response, disobedience and indiscipline of the workers of France to the requisition of the strikers in the refineries by the Macron government, with the huge wave of solidarity in France and internationally has shown the enormous power of organised struggle. It proved once again that without the workers nothing moves. We have the power and we can overthrow them. The victory of the workers of one country will be a victory for the workers of all countries.

From PAME, from the militant trade unions of Greece, we express our solidarity and support to the big strike of the French workers on January 19.

Victory to the workers of France!