How long will we work in the future? Politicians have to be honest on this question – that’s what Rainer Dulger thinks. The employer president says to do this with intergenerational equity.
Germany’s employers have called for a debate on extending working life in Germany. The pension system will not last in its current form, said employer president Rainer Dulger of the German press agency in Berlin.
“Our current financing for old-age provision actually looks old.” The problem is that the relationship between beneficiaries and contributors gets more and more out of whack when the cohorts born in the 1960s retire. “The federal government would have to make up for the loophole with tax revenues, but that is not a sustainable solution,” said Dulger. “One thing is clear: we cannot avoid a discussion about a longer working life.”
Politicians have to be honest when it comes to pensions, said Dulger. “We need a pension policy that looks longer than the next election date.” Making the pension grandchildren is a question of intergenerational equity, said Dulger. “Because I want my children to get an adequate pension too.” A longer-term forecast and regular reports are needed for all social security contributions. So the topic should be widely discussed in society.
Many people already like to work longer than the official retirement age. “We should set more incentives to work longer within the framework that exists today,” said Dulger. “It doesn’t make much sense, for example, for someone who has decided to work longer to continue paying into unemployment insurance, because they can no longer become unemployed.” If these contributions were waived for those affected or if the money were used for private pension provision, then that would be a real incentive, said Dulger.
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
