Social partners at a tripartite meeting (representatives of Government, employees and employers) on Monday voiced their objections against a bill on the reform of the first pension pillar, sponsored by Labour Minister Milan Krajniak (We Are Family). Both the unionists and representatives of employers see shortcomings in Krajniak's proposal.
The Republican Union of Employers (RUZ) opposes the plan to scrap caps for the payment of levies. "Already today, the cap is set too high for European standards; it is seven times the amount of the average wage," claimed RUZ Vice-president Mario Lelovsky. He underlined that Slovakia cannot afford to tax high-income earners so extremely - otherwise it runs the risk, for instance, of brain drain when it comes to experts and specialists.
A similar view was echoed by the Association of Employers Unions (AZZZ), with AZZZ Vice-president Rastislav Machunka claiming that such a proposal is unconstitutional. In addition, Machunka believes that the bill poses an enormous risk for the sustainability of public finances.
Unionists from the Confederation of Labour Unions (KOZ) stated that ideologically they find themselves in a starkly different place than the submitters of the bill. "Our stance on the subject remains the same. We reject the entire philosophy of the pension system reform, the way it has been conceived," said KOZ vice-president Monika Uhlerova. The unionists take issue particularly with the parental pension, which they find discriminatory, and demand that the whole bill be withdrawn from the legislative process.
Source: TASR
