This Wednesday, the Government rejected Podemos’s proposal to eliminate the reduction coefficients that apply to people who retire before reaching retirement age. ordinary age, despite having more than 40 years of contributions. The Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz, has defended that the current regulations already incorporate adequate measures in this matter.
During an urgent questioning in Congress, reported by Europa Press, Podemos deputy Martina Velarde described the current situation as “discrimination” and denounced that the reducing coefficients They are “unfair”, since they represent a “lifelong punishment” for those who have worked for decades, but do not reach the legal retirement age.
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Velarde recalled that in May 2024 his group registered a bill in Congress, accompanied by representatives of the Association for Early Retirement Without Penalization (ASJUBI), with the aim of eliminating these cuts. He has urged the minister and the PSOE to process this proposal.
There are already financial supplements for those who retire early
In her speech, Elma Saiz pointed out that “early retirement has had different modifications in the original design as a result of the reforms”, and that these changes have been made in accordance with “the recommendations of the Toledo Pact regarding the prolongation of the working life of workers.”
The minister recalled that the decree approved in 2021 included a financial supplement for certain people who had retired early between January 2002 and December 2021, as long as they accredited long periods of contributions and, where appropriate, low-amount pensions. Specifically, he specified that a minimum of 45 years and six months of contributions was required, or 40 years if the pension was less than 900 euros in January 2022.
According to the data provided, 104,000 complements have already been recognized within this framework.
Saiz has stressed that there are few European countries that allow early retirement without penalty, even in cases of long contribution periods. As an example, he cited Germany, where “if early retirement is requested at age 63, the amount to be received is penalized by 0.3% per month.”
In her reply, the Podemos deputy regretted that the minister “has not responded” to the demands raised and has reiterated her request to end what she considers an “injustice” that affects more than 900,000 people.
The minister concluded by stating that the pension system “has social justice mechanisms to avoid inequalities” and has defended that, thanks to the reforms undertaken, “peace of mind” has been restored to millions of pensioners.