Germany Faces Growing Elderly Poverty Amid Looming Pension Crisis
A staggering 45 percent of German workers can expect a meager pension of less than 1,200 euros a month, according to a recent report by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. This alarming trend is a result of the country’s low wages, which have failed to keep pace with inflation.
The report, requested by the Left Party, reveals that over 16 million workers can expect a pension of less than 1,200 euros a month, a figure that is expected to rise as the pension system continues to deteriorate. The problem is not just the low wages, but also the lack of a comprehensive social safety net to support the elderly.
The Left Party’s leader, Sahra Wagenknecht, has called for a minimum pension of 1,500 euros a month, payable after 40 years of contributions. She also advocates for a more equitable distribution of the burden of social insurance, arguing that all employees, including politicians, should contribute to the pension system.
The statistics paint a grim picture: in 2023, over 22 million Germans received a pension, but more than 42 percent of them had to get by on less than 1,250 euros a month. The situation is particularly dire for women, with nearly 54 percent of female pensioners receiving less than 1,250 euros a month.
The growing poverty among the elderly is not just a result of the pension system, but also of the financial dependence of many women on their partners, a phenomenon that is still prevalent in Germany. The country’s pension system has been criticized for perpetuating this inequality, with women often receiving lower pensions than men.
The government’s response to the crisis has been inadequate, with the introduction of a “basic pension” in 2021, a measure that has been criticized for being insufficient to address the problem of poverty among the elderly. The Left Party has accused the government of perpetuating a “neoliberal myth” that the state’s finances must be balanced by cutting social spending, a policy that has only led to increased poverty and inequality.