February 2020

18Feb

Greece. Pension hikes to come in June

The new bill by the Labor Ministry that was tabled on Monday in Parliament creates a new landscape for pensions and social security contributions. The interventions promoted have led to a strong reaction by many unions, which have decided to call a 24-hour strike for Tuesday. Among the many changes it includes, in line with the recent decisions by the Council of State, are increases in the replacement rates for workers with more than 30 years of insured labor,...

February 18, 2020
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06Feb

Greek public sector workers to strike over pension bill on Feb. 18

The civil servants’ union ADEDY has called a 24-hour strike for February 18 in protest at the conservative government’s legislation on pensions which is to go before a vote in Parliament this month. According to ADEDY, the bill perpetuates austerity measures introduced by governments during the crisis years, including auxiliary pension cuts of up to 50 percent. The union is calling for the revocation of all pension cuts imposed during the country’s financial crisis, the return of the so-called...

February 6, 2020
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January 2020

27Jan

Greek public sector workers set to strike over pension reform

Greek civil servants’ union ADEDY has heralded strike action as soon as a bill with the government’s pension reform is tabled in Parliament, ekathimerini.com reports. ADEDY’s executive committee indicated on Thursday that it would proceed with a 24-hour strike on the day the bill goes to the House, in line with a decision adopted during its session last week. The union's key demands are for the revocation of all pension cuts implemented during Greece’s bailout years and a full state guarantee...

January 27, 2020
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14Jan

Greek Authorities to Raise Pensions after Years of Cutbacks

A new bill submitted to parliament in January envisages new increase in pensions for pensioners in Greece. Pension increases will range from 3% to 10% and affect pensioners who have more than 30 years of insurance coverage. The supplementary pensions for the freelancers and farmers will also increase by up to 48%. The new social security reform should increase all pensions, which have been reduced to 1300 euros. The average increase will be with about of 99.5 euros. Read...

January 14, 2020
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December 2019

26Dec

Greek government planning pension rises for 450,000 recipients

After reversing itself and approving holiday handouts, Greece’s New Democracy government now said there will be hikes beginning in January 2020 to 450,000 main and auxiliary pension benefits. Who gets them and how much will be determined after a study for the Labor Ministry for the National Actuarial Authority, said Kathimerini in a report in which it said it was told by sources not identified that the hikes will be retroactive to Oct. 6, 2019, for 60,000 beneficiaries whose pensions...

December 26, 2019
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09Dec

Greece. Mechanism for retirees with low pensions

The government is planning to abolish the so-called 13th pension, i.e. the handout to pensioners the SYRIZA administration distributed before the elections this year, though the 971 million euros handed out to 2.5 million retirees will stay in their pockets. The Labor Ministry is already working on the creation of a permanent mechanism for the support of recipients of low pensions, within the social security system. The amount of the support and the width of the pensioner catchment will...

December 9, 2019
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September 2019

19Sep

Greece. New system for auxiliary pensions from 2021

Although the committee of experts set up to study the details of the new system still has a number of issues to work through, the Labor Ministry appears to have decided on the main principles of the new mechanism. These principles will include delinking the need to get the main pension first, before collecting the auxiliary one. Deputy Minister for Social Security Notis Mitarakis says that workers will be able to collect their auxiliary pensions at any point between...

September 19, 2019
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August 2019

01Aug

Greece. Government to introduce ceiling to stop paying huge pensions

The Labor Ministry is about to introduce a ceiling on the monthly amount of pensions, to apply retroactively, in order to plug the loophole in the Katrougalos law that allowed for some very large pensions, which in certain cases exceeded 20,000 euros a month. Ministry sources say that the retroactive application means that any pensioners who received very high benefits will now have to return the amount over the ceiling to be set. They add that they will not...

August 1, 2019
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May 2019

30May

Bank of Greece chief warns of pension drag on state budget

Bank of Greece Governor Yannis Stournaras on Tuesday sounded the alarm over the cost of social security, warning that the margins are “extremely narrow” for pensions to continue being paid out of the state budget. Speaking at a conference on private health insurance, the former finance minister warned of the challenges of an aging population and said that “poor implementation or backtracking on reforms have increased demands on public pension funds and resulted in higher pension costs.” He also...

May 30, 2019
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06May

Greece unveils bill to help millions who owe tax and pension arrears

By Ian McKenna Greece unveiled draft legislation on Sunday intended to provide relief to millions of Greeks with tax and pension contribution arrears, offering discounts to amounts owed and stretching out payment plans by up to 120 monthly installments. The country’s leftist government, trailing the conservative opposition in opinion polls before national elections due in the autumn, is keen to show its social sensitivity to those facing difficulty paying their accumulated dues. “Our plan helps those who are struggling...

May 6, 2019
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