This is what the parties demand in the debate on pension reform

After half a year of lead time, the chamber finally reached the pension debate on Wednesday. A pension reform should come, but before the government presents its own concept, the parties should first say how they position themselves in key questions.

The initial situation is clear: According to the last calculations, expenses in the pension system will be higher than the income from contributions from next year. For the coming year, a deficit of around 100 million euros will be expected, for 2027 even with almost 400 million euros, as Minister of Social Affairs Martine Deprez said. So time to think about how the system could be put on a more sustainable basis.

Various adjustment screws are conceivable to increase the income or reduce expenses: the retirement age could be increased, as well as the contributions, services could be reduced or the crediting years are less generously designed.

In order to relieve the first pillar of old -age provision, the compulsory contribution to the levy procedure, the operational (second pillar) and the private (third pillar) pension scheme could be strengthened. Finally, it must be decided whether a possible pension reform should also include civil servants. The ideas of how the pension system is to be saved differ. A broad consensus can be seen in some areas.

Retirement age

The statutory retirement age in Luxembourg is 65 years, but in fact Luxembourgers retire at an average of 60.2 years. The average of the OECD is 64 years, explains Alex Donnersbach from the CSV.

None of the parties considers it necessary to touch the statutory retirement age. This is one of the red lines for the LSAP, as Taina Bofferding explains. Among other things, the government parties CSV and DP advocate bringing the effective retirement age closer to the 65 years. In this way, incentives would have to be set that employees go for longer work, says Donnersbach.

Some parties, such as the DP, the pirates and the LSAP, propose a gradual reduction in working hours (« retraite progressive ») for people who approach retirement age. In this way, they hope that more people are working up to their 65th year of life.

Recognition of years without contribution payments

Baby years and study times up to the age of 27 can currently be claimed for pensions, even if no contributions have been paid in the years. All parties agreed to maintain this principle. However, the ADR points out that the limitation to the age of 27 is no longer up to date in times of « lifelong learning ».

Studies should be able to be credited, regardless of the phase of life. However, the contributions to the studies should not be borne from the pension but from the state treasury. The Greens also want to flexible here and suggest to recognize the regular period of study, plus one year. In addition, they want a pension bonus for employees who started working between the ages of 16 and 20 to upgrade the craft.

Increasing contributions

The system is currently financing itself by paying employers eight percent of their salary as a pension contribution, the same amount is paid by employers and the state. An increase in contributions to improving the financial situation is skeptical of « without excluding it », as Donnersbach said. This would automatically increase the costs for companies, which makes them less competitive, says Gérard Schockmel from the DP. It is therefore against an increase.

Currently, pension contributions on salaries are only raised up to the maximum rate of five times. Some parties, including the DP, are to reduce the lid or to delete them completely without gaining higher pension claims. The LSAP also finds this « likeable », as Bofferding says. Déi Lénk expects additional income of 700 million euros from the lifting of the lid. In addition, according to the party, all aspects of work, including overtime, should be able to become subject to contributions.

If necessary, the ADR suggests an increase in the respective contributions to nine percent, but gradually stretched to a period of ten years. Déi Lénk can also imagine an increase to nine percent in the medium term.

Like the pirates, the Greens can imagine increasing the proportion of the state in the contributions if this should be necessary. For this, some parties propose new sources of financing. The LSAP, as well as the Greens and the Pirates, wants to raise taxes on the use of artificial intelligence or robots or on income from assets. Djuna Bernard von der Greens refers to productivity gains from automation that could be used to finance pensions. The pirates can also introduce themselves to a auto -gun or higher taxes on harmful foods such as alcohol and on cigarettes.

Reform of public pensions

The focus of the debate is the pensions of the employees in the private sector. The big question that stands in the room is whether the system of civil servants must also be adapted. The CSV represents the position that there is currently no need for change, but the « Régime Transitoire » should expire in the public sector. The two systems should be adjusted in the medium term, says Alex Donnersbach.

Djuna Bernard from the Greens indicates that the state uses 16 percent of the state budget for civil servants. She calls for a pension fund for state officials to « set up the system more transparently » and « so that both systems approach ».

Supplement to the second and third column

The government parties had already announced in the coalition agreement that they wanted to strengthen the company and private pension. The CSV considers the tax incentives – up to 3,200 euros contributions to private pensions are not sufficient every year. The ADR wants flexibility here. In earlier professional years, employees often did not have the opportunity to fully exploit the framework of 3,200 euros. That is why you should be able to pay retrospectively at a later date.

The CSV proposes to invest a public fund in which payments are managed for additional voluntary pension insurance. This is supported by the DP, which promises high security from such a construction and a good result if the state does not pull out a return on itself. The ADR is also for a separate fund, but management is to be advertised. The claims from it should be inheritable.

For some parties, increased private provision is not a viable path. Many could not afford this financially to invest additional money in private old -age insurance, says Bofferding. Marc Baum from Déi Lénk refers to experiences from countries such as Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands, in which the poverty in old age has increased after the focus was on a capital -covered pension system.

Fight against poverty in old age

In order to counter the poverty in old age that threatens every tenth pensioner in the country, DP and CSV want more targeted state aid for those affected. These are more efficient and more precise than an increase in the minimum pension. The pirates propose a “pensioner card” for purchases to strengthen the purchasing power of the pensioners.

The LSAP speaks against the government parties' proposals. People who have worked all their lives are not « supplicants, » says Bofferding. Instead, she demands that the minimum pension increase at least 300 euros. The Greens even demand 400 euros.

The « gender-pay gap », the difference between the pension rights between men and women, is 36 percent in Luxembourg. This is often due to the fact that primarily women reduce their working hours when young people come. In order to counter this, the LSAP suggests that the state compensates for the costs of part -time work for both partners. In addition, the pension claims between the two partners should also be shared when it comes to divorces.