The groundwork is being laid for the most critical debate on pension reform, as the submission of the government’s bill to the social partners is just a matter of days away.

At least, that is the intention of the Minister of Labor, who, speaking to Alpha, assured that by next Wednesday, employers’ and labor organizations will be fully informed of the proposal’s contents. From there on, however, time is running out, as within a month the necessary agreements must be reached to allow the bill to be submitted to Parliament. This is an undertaking that faces serious doubts. “We

should already have the bill in our hands so that it can be evaluated in a timely manner. The timeframe leading up to the next session, given the specific circumstances arising from the two-month delay in submitting the bill, limit the ability of the social partners to provide a comprehensive and substantive response to this specific bill.”
_{Andreas Matsas – General Secretary of SEK} “However, if

there are issues that I cannot anticipate without having seen the bill—issues that will require further discussion, discussion, and, above all, reaching consensus among the partners in the tripartite cooperation, then this specific deadline may not be realistic.”
_{Michalis Antoniou – General Director of the OEB}

Marinos Mousiouttas, while acknowledging the difficulty, believes it is feasible to submit the bill to Parliament on September 20.

“What will be reflected in the bill are the details of what we’ve been discussing for so many years. I believe that one month—given the content of our proposal—will be more than enough for us to reach a consensus. If more time is needed, we’ll see.”
_{Marinos Mousiouttas – Minister of Labor}

He also notes that the government is open to any suggestion that does not alter the philosophy of the legislation or change the economic parameters.

“No cuts”

At the same time, the Minister “cuts short” the discussion that arose in the wake of reports about a reduction in certain pensions, intended to fund lower pensions. A provision that, according to sources, appears to have been included in the draft bill until very recently

.”Among the options previously presented by the actuary was a proposal for a small reduction in the number of the highest pensions. This was not accepted when it was raised by our partners, and since then we had agreed to move forward with other options. This has been done; there are no reductions, though there have been some adjustments to certain other benefits.”
_{Marinos Mousiouttas – Minister of Labor}

AKEL also issued a statement, calling on the government to answer, among other things, how many retirees will ultimately benefit from the reform and to what extent—if at all—it will provide for the extension of the Provident Funds to all working.

Watch the report by Rafaella Stavrinou: