French police fired tear gas Thursday in a village in southern France where President Emmanuel Macron visited a school, a day after he was booed in protest at a pension reform law.

And after facing angry voters in the Alsace region (east) on Wednesday, the 45-year-old president headed to the southern region of Erroux on Thursday to discuss education.

His visits outside Paris are meant to show his willingness to turn the page on unpopular pension reforms and show he is not trying to alienate voters, many of whom were angry at the way the legislation was passed.

He indicated that he wanted to "appreciate the teachers and increase their wages," saying from a school in the village of Ganj that they would receive an additional 100-230 euros ($110-250) per month after tax from September.

Ahead of his speech, police fired tear gas as hundreds of people chanting "Macron resign!" They blew their whistles, heading toward the school.
Local authorities announced a ban on "portable audio equipment", which a spokesman said targeted loudspeakers.

But the regional director of the Confederation General of Labor (CGT) Mathieu Guy told AFP that the demonstrators were also prevented from entering a safe area near the school, in possession of pots and flutes.
Macron's opponents on the left urged their supporters to knock on the pots during a speech on Monday night.

The pot ban sparked ridicule Thursday, with Communist Party spokesman Ian Brusatte saying he was "impatiently awaiting the legislation under which frying pans would be banned".

Macron stressed on Wednesday that raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 years is necessary to help France reduce its public spending in line with its European neighbors.

He signed the legislation into law on Friday evening after getting a green light in this regard from the Constitutional Court.

Other demonstrations took place Thursday, as union members entered the headquarters of the European "Euronext" stock exchange in one of Paris's main commercial districts.

Some railway workers resumed their strike on Thursday, leading to the cancellation of one in five regional trains and some transport services.