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Backlash in Iran as some wartime veterans circumvent new retirement law

A number of Iran's senior public sector workers are reportedly taking advantage of a new law that exempts highly disabled veterans from mandatory retirement.
Women stand next to a picture of war veterans as they visit a war memorial site in Khoozestan province near the Iraqi border, 1,345 km (841 miles) southwest of Tehran, March 19, 2009. Iranians visit the main battlegrounds of the Iran-Iraq war (1980-88) during the last week of the Iranian calendar to remember martyrs who died in the war. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN ANNIVERSARY CONFLICT POLITICS) - GM1E53J1LIZ01

Iran's important new retirement law, approved by the powerful Guardian Council enacted by the country's parliament, could effectively put an end to the decades-long practice of the re-employment of some government workers upon their retirement. In many cases government workers have their contracts extended once they reach retirement age, while occasionally retired workers are invited back to their positions.

While it has been widely welcomed as a crucial step toward improving the government institutions' efficiency, an exemption in the law is creating controversy. It stipulates that some officials wounded in action (mostly from the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War) could retain their positions even after the official retirement age. Injured veterans are categorized by the extent of their permanent injuries, and the new law exempts those disabled by 50%.

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