Tomas: Retirement Age Should Be Capped at Least for Manual Workers

(STVR, 'Sobotne dialogy', May 24) Speaking on STVR's politics programme 'Sobotne dialogy' (Saturday Dialogues), Labour Minister Erik Tomas (Voice-SD) said that the retirement age should be capped at least for manual workers. "It will be the question of this electoral term, as it has been included in the government manifesto. I think that some kind of retirement caps should apply to those doing heavy manual work," specified Tomas. According to him, the retirement age was already capped at 64 years, however, right-wing governments scrapped the cap and the retirement age is now increasing based on life expectancy. "I can't say at the moment whether in 20 years we will have new health-care technologies and the situation in the health sector will improve enough and our seniors will be in such a good condition that will allow us to increase the retirement age," said his opponent on the show, opposition MP Irena Bihariova (Progressive Slovakia/PS). "Basically, I don't think this is the trend and this is the golden grail we should seek," she said in reaction to the idea of capping the retirement age. Tomas stated that 95 percent of the first 58,000 pensioners, receiving pensions both from the first and second (capitalisation) pillars, have their monthly pensions some €50 lower than if they had remained in the first pillar only. "The whole debate is just about whether or not to allow a certain group of people to freely decide whether they want higher or lower pensions. This all depends on the debate with pension fund management companies," said Tomas, adding that they already held two or three meetings in this regard. Tomas pointed out that the possible opening of the second pension pillar would have a minimum positive impact on the consolidation of public finances. If, for example, 100,000 people left the second pillar, the state would only gain some €60 million, he added. ko