Pensions increased by 2,08 percent

The regular adjustment of January pensions will amount to 2,08 percent, the Management Board of the Pension and Disability Insurance Fund stated yesterday, based on data on inflation and average earnings in the last quarter of last year.

According to the earlier amendment of the Law on PIO, the minimum pension for January will amount to 450 euros, for all pensions except proportional ones. 737 million euros will be needed to pay the pension this year, which is 176 million more than last year.

The new Law stipulates that the regular four-month adjustment of pensions will not apply to the previous amount of the minimum pension for the next two years.

"This adjustment applies to all pensions except for those which on September 1 (previous adjustment) amounted to 296,35 euros (the previous lowest pension amount). All pensions in the interval from the old lowest to this new one of 450 euros are being adjusted, but they will be paid the difference up to the amount of 450 euros until, based on legal adjustments, they reach and overtake this amount", it was explained to "Vijesta" unofficially from the Fund PIO.

This means that the services of the PIO Fund will formally calculate regular adjustments for all pensioners who had pensions between 296,35 and 450 euros, but will pay them the amount of 450 euros until the amount of their pension exceeds that limit.

The Government previously announced that they introduced this limit, in order to reduce over time the difference between pensioners who are only eligible for the minimum pension and those who have more years of service and who were insured for higher salary amounts.

For proportionate pensioners, who receive more pensions from the republics of the former Yugoslavia, this increase in the minimum pension does not apply for now. The Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare announced that they are analyzing a new solution in order to increase their incomes.

According to last year's amendments to the PIO Act, pensions are adjusted three times a year on January 1, May 1 and September 1, based on four-month data on wage growth and inflation, based on Monstat data, by multiplying the higher growth rate by 0,75. 0,25 and lower with XNUMX, and the sum of the new two numbers represents the matching percentage. The board of directors has no influence, but only states the result from a mathematical formula.

The seven-member Board of Directors of the PIO Fund has been in a state of emergency since December 2022, when the then Government replaced three of its four representatives: Alija Košuta, Marko Kastratović and Jadranka Milošević, while only Kemal Đečević remained. The three remaining members are representatives of the Association of Pensioners Branko Vešović, the Union of Employers Danilo Kaluđerović and the trade union Željko Burić.

In order for the decisions to be adopted, all four current members must vote for them. The new Government was elected three months ago, but has not yet filled its part of the Board of Directors.