The German government’s plan to abolish the pension at 63 is causing debate within the SPD. Parliamentary Secretary Dirk Wiese supports keeping the abolition in principle but calls for exemptions for particularly demanding jobs. “Hard-working shift workers” should receive a hardship rule, Wiese said.
Wiese warned against removing individual parts from the pension package: “It’s like a Jenga tower: if you pull out a block, the whole thing becomes unstable.” Many people in strenuous jobs often do not reach the current age limit of 64.5 for a deduction-free pension. A hardship rule could cushion this.
Wiese cited Austria’s heavy labor pension as a possible “blueprint,” which allows early retirement from age 60. He also insisted on protection of legitimate expectations for around five years: “There must be no hard cliff edge.” Lower Saxony’s Olaf Lies (SPD) also stressed that anyone who has paid in for 45 years must benefit – that is “a question of fairness.”
Employers sharply criticized the resistance. BDA Managing Director Steffen Kampeter told Bild newspaper that it made him “speechless” that central elements of the pension package were being questioned. Union parliamentary group leader Thorsten Frei advocated in the ARD capital studio for passing the entire package of measures.
Source: Tagesschau
