Push to raise pensions in Germany as more retirees return to work
There are currently over 56,000 more over-67s employed in Germany than at the end of last year. According to the Left Party, many are returning to work to "make ends meet" each month.
According to a report from the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND), which cites responses from the Federal Ministry of Labour to parliamentary inquiries by the Left Party, there are currently 1,123,000 employees in Germany who are aged over 67. This age corresponds to the standard retirement age for people born after 1964.
This number is reportedly made up of 251,000 who are covered by social security and 872,000 who are exclusively engaged in "marginal employment" - most often mini jobs.
The fact that the vast majority of retirees are just working in so-called €520 mini-jobs is seen by the Left Party as a clear indication that more and more retirees are forced to work to make ends meet.
READ ALSO: Retirement age in Germany continues to rise, new figures show
As a result of the findings. the Left Party is calling for an increase in pensions.
"More and more people are having to work even after the age of 67, which is a sad development and a symptom of a broken pension system," said the Eastern Germany Commissioner of the Left Party, Sören Pellmann, to RND.
Inadequate pensions and high prices effectively compel more elderly people to continue working. "For many, this is not a voluntary decision but a necessity to get through the month," criticised Pellmann.
The Chairman of the Left Party's parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Dietmar Bartsch, had demanded an increase in pensions of ten percent or a minimum of €200 per month last week.
He also insisted that the pension level in Germany must be raised to "at least 53 percent" from its current level of about 48 percent.
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According to a report from the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND), which cites responses from the Federal Ministry of Labour to parliamentary inquiries by the Left Party, there are currently 1,123,000 employees in Germany who are aged over 67. This age corresponds to the standard retirement age for people born after 1964.
This number is reportedly made up of 251,000 who are covered by social security and 872,000 who are exclusively engaged in "marginal employment" - most often mini jobs.
The fact that the vast majority of retirees are just working in so-called €520 mini-jobs is seen by the Left Party as a clear indication that more and more retirees are forced to work to make ends meet.
READ ALSO: Retirement age in Germany continues to rise, new figures show
As a result of the findings. the Left Party is calling for an increase in pensions.
"More and more people are having to work even after the age of 67, which is a sad development and a symptom of a broken pension system," said the Eastern Germany Commissioner of the Left Party, Sören Pellmann, to RND.
Inadequate pensions and high prices effectively compel more elderly people to continue working. "For many, this is not a voluntary decision but a necessity to get through the month," criticised Pellmann.
The Chairman of the Left Party's parliamentary group in the Bundestag, Dietmar Bartsch, had demanded an increase in pensions of ten percent or a minimum of €200 per month last week.
He also insisted that the pension level in Germany must be raised to "at least 53 percent" from its current level of about 48 percent.
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