The French government will continue to convince the French of the need for pension reform, which authorities plan to implement in 2023, despite massive protests by citizens, French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said Thursday.

“Working more will allow future retirees to get higher pensions,” Borne said.

“By 2030, our system will be financially balanced,” she added.

At the same time, the prime minister called on unions, which are preparing mass strikes against the country's pension reform, "not to punish" the French.

On Tuesday, Born presented a draft of the controversial pension reform that the government plans to pass in 2023. She said French authorities would begin raising the country's retirement age by three months a year on Sept. 1, 2023, so it would reach 64 by 2030.

Later, all eight leading French trade unions (CFDT, CGT, FO, CFE-CGC, CFTC, Unsa, Solidaires, FSU) announced a major national protest against the pension reform on January 19.