Don’t wait for the collapse of the social security system
Quite offhandedly, almost unofficially, the minister of labor and social insurance yesterday said that the country’s social security system is not viable. Of course he quickly hastened to add that there is no question of further reductions to pensions.
Hopefully Yiannis Vroutsis is right, but the truth is somewhat more complicated than that.
The recession, extensive evasion of social security contributions, undeclared labor and the low birthrate constitute a very dangerous mix that will inevitably lead to a serious shake-up of the system at some point.
Until that time comes, though, the government needs to take the first step and launch a serious and concerted effort to rationalize the system and cut the operation costs of the country’s social security funds, giving them time to adjust to their new circumstances.
