The secretariat of the Austrian Bishops’ Conference has criticized the country’s pensions reform. Already at the end of its spring plenary assembly, Cardinal Cristoph Schoenborn, president of the Austrian Bishops’ Conference, had warned of the danger of penalizing large families. The penalization of workers with children is one of the main criticisms levelled against the pension reform by the Austrian episcopate. The average period for the calculation of pensions, 40 working years, “would penalize in a manifest way”, in the view of the bishops “those women who, to bring up one or more child”, give up their job or work part time. It should not be forgotten, they recall, that the education of children “represents a significant factor” both for the demographic development of the country and for the future prosperity of the family: this female contribution cannot be “fined” by lowering the level of pensions. The “positive developments” introduced by the government in the form of “child allowances for those mothers who dedicate themselves to their children” cannot be “offset” by “disadvantages in their pensions”. Another controversial point is that of workers close to retirement age. “It would be wrong to punish those who work longer and thus continue to pay contributions by granting them reduced pensions”. The bishops also criticize the privileges of those who enjoy particular pensions and benefits (such as politicians): the bishops urge that they too “be included” in the pension reform: that would send an “effective signal” to the population.
