More than 100,000 working retirees will report their employment in the summer. “The issue of increasing the retirement age is not being discussed. We have the highest retirement age in Europe, but also one of the highest life expectancies.” – explained the Minister of Labor Domna Mikhailidou.
“I want to make this issue clear: neither the Ministry of Labor nor the government as a whole is discussing the issue of raising age limits”– said Mikhailidou, answering the question OPEN about legislation, “pointing” to adjust age limits from 2027.
What will happen to EFKA debtors
The Minister of Labor, however, clarified that by the end of May a ministerial decision will be published on the retirement of EFKA debtors who owe more than 20,000 and up to 30,000 euros. “Last week, the ministerial decision was signed by the Ministry of Finance and will be published within a month,” – said Mikhailidou.
The Ministry's decision will give impetus to the gradual opening (according to reports, this will take about two months) of a corresponding online platform, so that insured persons who find themselves in a difficult situation due to the fact that they owe EFKA more than 20,000 euros and under the current scheme must pay the entire additional amount in one go in order for their pension application to be accepted.
Let us remind you that the insured persons will receive a pension, from which up to 60% of the pension will be withheld in installments until the amount of the debt is less than 20,000 euros (or 6,000 euros for farmers), and then the remaining part of the debt will be withheld, as today, in 60 installments with a minimum amount of 50 euros.
Working pensioners
“To date, 84,000 people have been registered on the platform for working pensioners, while before the adoption of the new law (until the end of February 2024), the number of registered pensioners did not exceed 30,000. With the new regime – paying a pension of 100% and deducting 10% from professional income – the number of people registered has almost tripled in two months, and by the summer, “we estimate it will exceed 100,000”, – said Mikhailidou.
Regarding retroactive payments, she said that this is an ongoing situation while EFKA closes cases, and in May additional amounts will be paid, approximately “every 2 months we have retroactive payments” due to recalculations, etc.
“We said that we would respect and implement any decision of the courts,” – answered Mikhailidou, closing, however, the window for the payment of retroactive payments from cut gifts and cuts in additional pensions to pensioners who did not go to court for the controversial 11 months of 2015-2016, due to the fiscal limits that the country has after the return of the Stability Pact and new fiscal rules.
As for the personal difference, she said: “We are increasing pensions in all areas, but there are groups of pensioners, especially high-level ones, who do not see an increase. What are we trying to do in this case? Specific payments, once or twice a year, which horizontal increases do not reach.”
Lack of subsidies for seasonal workers
“We're trying to prioritize our budget goals,” the Labor Secretary explained. We have given priority to families, young mothers and children. For so many years, freelancers have not received maternity benefits.” However, she closed the debate on maternity benefits for seasonal tourism workers by responding that they had not worked the 10 months of the year required to receive unemployment benefits.
However, she noted an increase in maternity benefits. Finally, she announced new legislation to ensure that seafarers' wives also received maternity benefits. “We have to see what happens. They are not covered by this maternity benefit. We are exploring ways to include them as well.”
Finally, she reminded children's recreation programs from ΕΦΚΑ and ΔΥΠΑ: Last week the ΔΥΠΑ platform closed (66,000 families applied) for a program that will reach 70,000 children, and on Monday 20 May the NFKA platform opens for 36,000 children without income criteria, and applications will be submitted until May 30.
“Everyone chooses where they want to go, and parents don’t pay anything extra. “In addition, for the first time this year we will have mixed camps – for typically developing children and children with disabilities.”
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