Social protection net for the over 55s, free reunification of social security schemes (including separate management), harmonization of guaranteed rates of return on contributions, flexibility with lower allowances for early leavers, the possibility for employers to pay additional contributions to their employees in addition to the mandatory ones. These are the five pillars of the pension reform proposal presented last month by INPS to the government, as announced today by President Tito Boeri during the report to the Chamber on the Institute's Annual Report. The measures were not illustrated in detail "for reasons of institutional concern", but Boeri specified that the interventions were not conceived "for cash reasons", but to "seek greater equity, both between different generations and within each generation".
1. SOCIAL PROTECTION NETWORK FOR OVER 55s
According to the President of INPS, this is the first step "towards the introduction of that guaranteed minimum income which is currently lacking in our country" and which will lead to distinguishing assistance and social security also at an accounting level. In this way, according to Boeri, it will be possible to overcome an original flaw in the contribution system", i.e. that of "not providing minimum benefits for those who have no other income and have accumulated too low a contribution amount to guarantee themselves a pension above the poverty".
2. REJUNCTION: STOP TO ADDITIONAL CHARGES
“The regulatory change that we have proposed – continued Boeri – allows individuals to unify the pension between different schemes, including the so-called separate management. Without additional charges".
3. HARMONIZATION OF PERFORMANCE
To reduce the difference between treatments, the social security institution asks for the revaluations of the contributions paid to be harmonised. And not just for the funds administered by the INPS, but for everyone, including parliamentarians and their annuities. Boeri deems it desirable that “the Chamber and the Senate make public the rules that historically underlie these annuities as soon as possible. It will be used to evaluate the rates of return implicitly guaranteed to deputies and senators and to compare them with the treatment reserved for other workers”.
4. SUSTAINABLE FLEXIBILITY
The President of INPS then underlined that “it is right to ask those with high pension incomes, by virtue of much more advantageous treatments than those enjoyed by tomorrow's pensioners, for a contribution to the financing of more flexible outgoings. It will also help those generations who have had the misfortune to run into the crisis at the end of their working careers”. to the residual life expectancy, therefore the social security allowance will be lower for those who collect it first. "Given that pensions are sufficient to guarantee a dignified life without involving the intervention of social assistance - continued Boeri - this is sustainable flexibility".
5. POSSIBLE ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS
The Institute's latest proposal envisages giving employers the possibility of paying additional contributions (in addition to the mandatory ones) to their employees, given that the relationship between taxpayers and pensioners is destined to worsen.
POLETTI: IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION, WE WILL EVALUATE IT TOGETHER WITH THE OTHERS
"It is an unquestionably useful contribution - said the Minister of Labour, Giuliano Poletti, commenting on the INPS proposals -, which will be used by the Government for the definition of its own proposals on the subject together with the proposals that are already present today in Parliament, to those advanced by the social partners and those being developed by the ministry within its own offices. These are the conditions for making a good decision which will naturally be up to the Government and Parliament".
