French President Macron Signs Controversial Pension Reform Into Law Amid Heavy Protests

After months of opposition, France's Constitutional Council accepted the key retirement-age legislation on Friday, which the administration passed through parliament without a final vote.

French President Emmanuel Macron has signed a pension bill into law that would raise the retirement age by two years

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New Delhi: Despite facing widespread protests across the country, French President Emmanuel Macron has signed a pension bill into law that would raise the retirement age by two years, ANI reported citing a report by Al Jazeera on Saturday.

After months of opposition, France's Constitutional Council accepted the key retirement-age legislation on Friday, which the administration passed through parliament without a final vote.

The Constitutional Council, comprised of nine members, approved the key reform provisions including raising the retirement age to 64 and extending the number of years of employment required for a full pension. They determined that the legislation was in compliance with French law.

Al Jazeera reported that the fight to put the bill into effect became the biggest challenge of Macron's second term because of both the overwhelming public resistance to the revisions and his own declining personal popularity.

A specific contract for older workers as well as requiring large corporations to disclose the number of persons over 55 they employ were two of the nine minor ideas that were turned down in the discussion.

Earlier, the reforms were passed by parliament on March 16 after the government used a mechanism to bypass a vote by MPs, inflaming nationwide protests. They were considered adopted by parliament when the government survived two no-confidence motions on March 20.

According to France24, the reforms can only come into law once they are validated by the Constitutional Council, which has the power to strike out some or even all of the legislation if deemed out of step with the Constitution.

Protestors marched in cities and villages across France prior to the ruling, protesting President Emmanuel Macron's unpopular proposal to increase the retirement age to 64.

The citizens of France have been a part of the months-long protest movement against the pension reform that has sent social tensions spiraling in France and Macron and his government refuses to give way.

(With inputs from ANI)