Ivan Camilleri, Brussels
62% are against change in age for retirement
The majority of Maltese respondents are ‘not concerned’ about the demographic consequences of old age on the economy and object to any further increase in retirement age, according to a new survey.
Although 78 per cent of respondents are conscious that in 20 years time Malta’s population is going to grow much older, only 36 per cent expressed concern about the consequences.
The survey shows that the majority of Maltese, 62 per cent, disagree with any further increases in retirement age. Only 31 per cent are prepared to accept further increases.
Malta’s Eurobarometer survey was conducted by Misco International last October among a sample of 500 people.
The survey results show the Maltese are more flexible with working beyond their legal retirement age.
Although 23 per cent would like to continue working after they reach retirement age, 75 per cent believe those who want to continue working beyond retirement should be able to do so. Just 18 per cent agreed that older workers should be obliged to retire once they reach pensionable age.
18
– percentage of those who agree older workers should be obliged to retire once they reach pensionable age
Asked whether there should be a retirement age at all, Maltese respondents were split in half, with 47 supporting the idea and 46 per cent opposed.
In recent years, European governments have been struggling with public opinion to introduce major reforms in the pensionssector to cushion the inevitable ageing time-bomb.
The Maltese government has also introduced major reforms in this area, although the European Commission still believes more needs to be done to ensure pensions are on a sound footing.
Through these reforms, the retirement age of men and women has been put on an equal footing while the retirement age will be gradually increased to 65.
In the last few months, the government embarked on a stock-take review of pension reform to consider moving towards the introduction of a second phase involving voluntary private pensions. However, no decisions have been taken so far.
The EU survey also sheds light on people’s perceptions of the definition of old age. On average, the Maltese quantify old age to start at 65 while many believe one stops being young at 37.
On the other hand, most other EU citizens believe old age starts at 64 and one stops being young at 42.
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francis Buhagiar
Jan 15th, 18:28
62% +1 I am amongst those who disagree that pension should rise to 65 and even 62 is too much. I wish I will have the power to be mentally and physically sane after 60 but I wonder how possible that could be. Most of the people I know over 56 the first thing they do in the morning is to swallow a hand full of pills, another at noon and another one in the evening. They take an hour to move from one place to the next, forget where they put the things they had in hand a minute before and so on. These people will be forced to remain in the service while taking the place of a more productive young person. This is a waste of human resources. It is good that those who are still healthy remain in the service so they can pass their experience to the younger employees but this should be done on voluntary bases.
Further more the government should for have long thought for a kind of a private pension scheme to add to the retirement pension so he can reduce the government pension .
Eleven years ago I made a PRP with a local bank they told me that if I pay a certain amount every month I will get either a lump sum or 400 Lm. A month. To me that seemed incredible but I haven’t red the last line written in very small print (this is an assimilation) in Maltese (kollox taparsi). If I have to withdraw it at this moment I will not recuperate the money I have invested and I doubt if I will in the future. So it is the government duty too see that we will have a secured private pension scheme to add to the government pension. Reduce the NI. Contribution, keep the retirement at 61 so that more jobs will be created to our children.
Frans Buhagiar.
Emma Xerri
Jan 16th, 00:14
The only and real reason they want to rise the retirement age is because they do not want to pay out any pensions.
Actuarial figures show clearly that after a certain age, you chances of making it to another year decrease dramatically, thus even by increasing retirement age by just two years, the state (or private pension schemes run and managed by Insurance/Banking cartels) stand to gain hundreds of millions of $ or Euros each year - money that could be used to fattend the pockets of the already obese fat-cats and other corporate sponsors of government, in some countries these are the very same people, that is government is the corporations.
walter camilleri
Jan 16th, 09:05
This just shows that people are either totally self-centered, or fail to understand the problems any government is facing with the pensions time-bomb.
They do not seem to realise that with the population ageing, and fewer babies being born, in ten or twenty years' time, each two workers paying national insurance will be required to support one pensioner, as against todays situation where it is four workers supporting one pensioner through the National Insurance fund. That is the problem for our children, and childrens' children in the near future, not older workers taking yound people's jobs.
In reality, (but people in general fail to see this) Malta, indeed Europe, needs an inflow of young immigrants to join the workforce legally, and add their NI contributions to the fund. One only need to look around to see the number of immigrants happily doing jobs that Maltese young men are, for one reason or another, unwilling to undertake. One can only hope they are registered and paying their contributions!
Walter Camilleri
Emma Xerri
Jan 16th, 14:24
@Walter Camilleri
Certainly your solution that young 'immigrants' will take over paying taxes to support an aging population is a lot of pie in the sky. Everyone knows that immigrants, and the immigrants know this better than anyone, are here to suckle from the welfare benefits and thus can only exacerbate the problem.
Yes, it seems perfectly plausible that these immigrants come to your country, facing death in the waters in order to work so you and your children would be able to have a decent pension LOL.
As to why Government do not have money to pay pensions (or so they say) the most obvious reason is that they over-spent and took huge chunks of the money that was set aside for pensions, seeing this as an extensiion of taxes collected. The blame is on the government yet they want us to make the sacrifices and find a solution (like working till we retire in the grave). Isn't it funny how no expense is too great except when it comes to pensions, when every country balks at paying these out, forgetting that it is our own money in the first place that they are paying us or the fact that the sky is the limit when it comes to military spending or projects in partnership with the private sector that cost taxpayers millions but make lots of money for private investors,or the selling of national assets at rock bottom prices. There are thousands of places were money is leaking out, yet it is always pensions that are to blame.
The obviousl solution if it is as you say, four workers would be needed to support one pensioner in the future, is to re-direct some of the tax money to pensions, instead of wasting them on running a refugee service with all the benefits and trimmings, increase taxes on the rich and cut wasteful spending, for example every four years the Olympic games are held at hundreds of millions in costs. Invariably, each country that hosts these games, take on huge debts (the money going into the pockets of private contractors) and after the four weeks are up, the taxpayers are left with an empty and decaying little village, all for the sake of international posturing and for some "games". The real problem with pensions is that governemts everywhere no longer represent the working people.