Kazım Ergün: The base pension of millions of retirees is below the minimum pension of 7,500 liras

Kazım Ergün, Chairman of the Turkey Retired Persons Association (TÜED), said that certain changes made to social security legislation in the past have led to inequalities in pension payments.

Stating that the number of retirees in Turkey is around 15.6 million, Ergün pointed out that approximately 6 million retirees receive a monthly pension at the 7,500 lira level.

Emphasizing that the base pension of millions of retirees is below the minimum pension of 7,500 liras, Ergün provided the following information:

"The lowest of the base pensions, which are raised to 7,500 liras with state support, is at the 5,500 lira level. Even if a 50 percent raise, which has created expectations in the public, is applied to a 5,500 lira base pension, the monthly amount these retirees will receive will be 8,250 liras. In this case, it would actually mean a 10 percent raise for a retiree who receives 7,500 liras with state support. For retirees whose base pension is between 5,500 and 7,500 liras, a raise of 20 or 33 percent will be applied depending on the level of their base pension."

"A FLAT RAISE SHOULD BE GIVEN TO THOSE WHO PAID HIGH PREMIUMS"

Stating that base pensions must be increased to improve the income and welfare levels of retirees, Ergün said, "The base pension of millions of retirees is below the minimum pension of 7,500 liras. A significant portion of retirees receive 7,500 liras with state support. Therefore, 7,500 liras should be accepted as the base pension, and the January raise should be applied on top of this. If this step is not taken, millions of retirees will once again receive a raise below the inflation rate."

Ergün requested that a separate flat-rate improvement be made to the pensions of those who receive more than 7,500 liras by paying high premiums so that they are not treated unfairly, stating that this figure should be 8,077 liras, the same amount applied to civil servants in July.