Divisions are widening in France after the government laid out the details of its highly anticipated pension reform plan. Union leaders have vowed to continue their industrial action over the proposals, with many calling for the government to retreat.  

In a major concession, the country's prime minister, Edouard Philippe, promised that workers born before 1975 would not be affected by the changes at all. This is a decade later than that originally proposed in a draft plan of the reforms. But union workers are not satisfied.  

"The age measures announced are insufficient, particularly on the issue of hardship," said Laurent Berger, general secretary of the CFDT union. "I am meeting with the CFDT national office to find out how we will act in the coming weeks." 

The official retirement age will remain 62, which is among the lowest in Europe, but workers will only receive full benefits if they work to 64. It will then become the official age in 2027.  

As expected, the government reaffirmed plans to combine France's 42 different pension schemes into one, points-based system. This eliminates so-called "special regimes" which offer exclusive benefits such as early retirement to certain employees. Some groups such as France's police officers, armed forces, firefighters, and prison guards, would still be entitled to early retirement under the plans. 

"There is no hidden agenda, we are not looking to penny-pinch here or there," said Philippe. "We don't want to hurt anyone. On the contrary, we want to protect the purchasing power of workers and the purchasing power of pensioners." 

Workers will receive points for each day worked, which will go towards future retirement benefits. Although it remains unclear how the value of these points will be determined.  

France's pension system is among the most expensive in the world, accounting for 14 percent of GDP.