2024-07-11 20:56:05
Retirement pensions could increase by an average of 356 crowns from January. The exact amount will still be calculated according to the development of wages. The solidarity fixed part of the pension should be increased by 290 crowns for everyone, and the merit percentage part of the pension should increase by 0.4 percent. Minister of Labor Marian Jurečka (KDU-ČSL) announced this at a press conference.
According to him, valorization will require 12.2 billion crowns next year. In total, about 705.9 billion crowns could be paid out for pensions. Roughly 2.85 million people receive a pension from the Czech Social Security Administration (ČSSZ). Another tens of thousands of pensions are paid by the systems of the departments of defence, interior and justice.
“The average old-age pension will increase next year and exceed the 21,000 crown mark. The average amount next year will be 21,078 crowns. Now in June, the average pension amount is 20,708 crowns,” said the minister.
The pension consists of two parts. The solidarity fixed amount is the same for everyone and corresponds to ten percent of the average salary. This year it amounts to 4400 crowns. According to Jurečka, it should rise from January by 290 crowns to 4,690 crowns.
The merit percentage then reflects the amount of earnings, years worked and the number of raised children. According to the minister, it could increase by 0.4 percent from January. However, this amount would not be adjusted for people who took early retirement after October of last year and do not yet have the proper retirement age. Only the solidarity part should increase.
The pension increase is calculated from the average wage, the average old-age pension, the increase in prices for pensioners’ households and the increase in real earnings. The increase in the consumer price index over the past year from the beginning of last July to the end of this June, the average pension for June or the expected average salary for the next year are taken into account. According to Jurečka, the increase in prices for pensioner households during the monitored period reached 1.7 percent.
Over 700 billion will go to pensions
About 705.9 billion crowns should go to pensions next year. Of this, 12.2 billion crowns will be needed for the increase. According to estimates, the pension insurance system should remain in deficit. Next year, according to the calculations so far, it should amount to about 18.3 billion crowns, the minister said.
This year, at the end of the first quarter, the CSSS provided 2.37 million old-age pensions, 411,500 disability pensions and 65,100 widow, widower and orphan pensions. The average retirement pension in June was 20,704 crowns. Retirement pensions from the systems of the Departments of the Interior, Justice and Defense are several thousand higher.