The SPD’s General Secretary, Matthias Miersch, has rejected the employers’ demand for an increase in the retirement age. “Those who have worked for years deserve a reliable pension” Miersch told the Funke-Mediengruppe newspapers (Friday editions). “We have already made sure that additional income in old age is simpler. But this should not become a hidden obligation to continue working.”
The President of the Employers’ Association, Rainer Dulger, had called for a “dynamic retirement age” and suggested linking the pension to the average life expectancy. “We are not discussing pension cuts or an increase in the retirement age, but stabilization of the pension level” Miersch replied. The SPD’s General Secretary warned, “If we do not act now, the pension level will drop by July, effectively leading to pension cuts for millions.” Therefore, the SPD plans to fix the pension level at 48 percent.