Retire at 72? Why the proposal of the Spanish business lobby has no grip
- The Employers' Circle of Spain says that the way the public pension system does not fall bankrupt "within five years" is to extend the retirement age between 68 and 72 years. This lobby uses the same discourse as the extreme right in the United States and elsewhere.
The Employers' Circle, an important business lobby in the Spanish state, has published a decalogue with proposals for measures to be adopted in the economic sphere "to the new regulators and managers". Among other things, he said that the retirement age should be delayed between 68 and 72 years.
It also proposes other measures: reducing redundancy payments to 20 days a year, reducing taxes, particularly excise duties on banks, energy companies and large fortunes, and many other issues.
Manuel Pérez-Sala, President of the Circle, presents these proposals, arguing that similar measures are being taken elsewhere. "You should not be frightened," says El Diario Vasco.
But the arguments put forward by the business lobby are the same as those put forward by the extreme right elsewhere: the bankruptcy of the pension system. They say that if the retirement age is not delayed, the system "within five years" will sink.
In Euskal Herria, too, the movements of pensioners have long been saying that in order to maintain the pension system, it would be enough to pay pensions through budgets, such as complementarity or education.
The same speech in America
In Florida the US is also claiming the retirement age delay from 67 to 70 years, being one of the most controversial issues in the mid-term elections. Far-right politicians announce the "failure" of Social Security, in the confidence that "your money will be spent" by 2034.
But journalists on the left have put these arguments upside down, among others, saying that instead of delaying the retirement age or cutting pensioners, another ‘nice’ solution may be raising taxes on the wealthiest.
In Euskal Herria, too, the movements of pensioners have been saying for some time that, in order to maintain the pension system, it would be enough to pay pensions through budgets, such as complementarity or education.
Unai Sordo, Secretary General of CCOO of the Spanish State, immediately replies to the proposal of the Employers' Circle: "I would put holes in the orchards or climb a scaffold." Deaf argues that the retirement age would not increase in some sectors but should be reduced.
CCOO and UGT agreed with the Government of Spain on pension reform and was approved in March 2023 in the Spanish Congress. The unions say that contributions to social security are shielded, because maximum contributions have been increased, among other things: "For the first time, pensions will be secured by increasing revenue and not just reducing expenditure," said UGT Secretary General Pepe Álvarez.
However, the main Basque trade unions are opposed to this pact, such as ELA and LAB, because it has really been a ‘new cut’ and will not be enough to maintain decent minimum pensions.
