A new study has shown that public pensions are considered too low, but there is no consensus among Europeans on their revision.
As the EU population ages and Brussels calls on member states to develop private pension systems, most residents of France, Germany, Spain, and Italy believe that their countries' public pension systems are already inaccessible to them.
However, they also consider the current system not generous enough and do not support many options for its reorganization, such as raising the retirement age, according to a YouGov survey.
Greece and Italy spend the largest share of national income on public pensions among OECD countries - about 16% of GDP, according to an OECD report.
They are followed by Austria, France, and Portugal, which spend between 13% and 14% of their budgets.
Two-thirds of respondents from France, Germany, and Spain claim that the public pension system in their countries will be unavailable to the population by the time people currently aged 30-40 retire.
On the other hand, those who are already retired consistently have a more optimistic view of their country's ability to finance the public pension system.
Is There a Consensus on a Solution?
More than 70% of non-retired Italians and Poles are unsure whether they will have enough money for a comfortable retirement.
Among French and Spanish respondents, this figure is 66% and 64%, respectively.
Despite acknowledging the problems facing the public pension system, support for measures that could help address this issue is limited.
The most popular options among retirees and working respondents in five EU countries are providing support to older employees so they can stay in their jobs longer rather than retire, and introducing a legislative requirement for working individuals to make additional contributions to a private or corporate pension program or savings plan.
Polish respondents particularly favor the idea of supporting older workers, while Germans prefer additional contributions to private or occupational pensions.
Italy emerged as the only EU member state advocating for the reduction or complete abolition of public pensions for high-income retirees.
The least preferred solutions included raising taxes for the working population, cutting funding for public services for the elderly, and reducing the amount of public pension payments for all retirees.
What Are the EU's Plans to Address This Issue?
Public pensions in most EU countries are paid on a "pay-as-you-go" basis, meaning current workers finance current retirees.
With a shrinking working-age population and the rise of non-standard employment, citizens in several EU member states lack confidence in securing adequate pensions in the future, especially women.
The gender pension gap - the difference in average pension income between men and women - stands at 24.5%.
The European Commission has outlined a two-pronged approach to increase pension savings and mobilize up to €10 trillion in bank deposits across the bloc to support the EU's strategic priorities, particularly defense, security, digital, and green transitions.
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