ECONOMY

Auxiliary pensions to suffer cuts

Auxiliary pensions to suffer cuts

Around 122,000 pensioners face reduced supplementary pensions, including freelancers, self-employed doctors, engineers and lawyers. Under a ministerial decision signed by Alternate Minister for Social Security Pavlos Haikalis as part of Greece’s third memorandum, 11 auxiliary funds will automatically be included in a single supplementary insurance fund, ETEA, for around 1.8 million pensioners.

The auxiliary funds should have been included in ETEA as part of Greece’s second bailout, but the provision was never applied.

The 11 funds under ETEA will operate as a single administrative and financial organization.

Major changes are expected with the implementation of new social security rules through which the insured will be subject to uniform rules without exception, and will be entitled to corresponding benefits.

The ETEA budget for 2015 shows a deficit of 326 million euros, while the savings from integrating the funds is expected to be around 16 million euros.

The third memorandum prevents ETEA deficits being covered by the state budget. Therefore a second round of reductions to supplementary pensions from October on is seen as inevitable.
 

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