Pensions are a particularly sensitive issue in a country where 2.9m people — more than a quarter of the population — are formally retired even though 1m of them are still below 65.
“We still allow people to retire in their 50s on a full pension, for example mothers with underage children who have worked for 20 years,” said Platon Tinios, a Piraeus university professor and international pensions expert.
“This situation can only get worse . . . The system has maintained high contribution rates even though pensions have been effectively halved . . . This puts severe constraints on hiring and encourages expansion in the informal labour market,” said Milton Nektarios, a former governor of IKA....
“Structural reforms of the pension system remain unfinished because the funds are used by politicians for making patronage appointments,” Mr Nektarios said.
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