Working public sector employees are offered to raise pensions: what’s the catch?

The State Duma proposes to return indexation of pensions to those working in the public sector. Such a bill has already been submitted to parliament. According to the authors, the document has every right to life. But, as they say, deputies believe, but the government disposes.

This is far from the first attempt by State Duma deputies to break through indexation for working pensioners, frozen since 2016. At first they tried to achieve indexation for all older workers – to no avail! The government rejected all bills on this topic prepared by different factions and parliamentary groups. Then they began to promote the idea in parts. First there was a bill on indexing pensions for working disabled people, now – for public sector employees.

The authors of the bill from the LDPR faction propose to resume indexation for working pensioners in the public sector: in educational institutions, health and cultural authorities, social workers, including nannies in kindergartens and nurses in hospitals.

As reported in the explanatory note to the bill, the abolition of indexation had a negative impact on working pensioners in general and public sector employees in particular. The authors of the document propose to restore their insurance pension payments in full from January 1 of next year, based on the current value of one pension coefficient as of that date. Such a step by the government towards the elderly will support the population’s confidence in the pension system, the authors are convinced.

Meanwhile, according to the Social Fund of Russia (SFR), in our country last year there were about 8 million working pensioners. In 2016, when indexation was abolished, there were twice as many of them – 15 million. How many of them relate to the public sector is not known for certain.

According to one of the authors of the bill, the head of the State Duma Committee on Labor, Social Policy and Veterans Affairs, Yaroslav Nilov, due to the fact that pensions for workers are not indexed, many areas of activity are exposed, especially for difficult but low-paid work. In his opinion, such a bill has prospects.

However, not so long ago, parliamentarians developed a bill on indexing pensions for working disabled people, a category smaller in number than public sector employees. It would seem that getting them indexed by the government would be a simpler task. But just a month ago it became known that the project was sent by the Cabinet of Ministers for “substantial revision.”

What fate will befall the new initiative of the deputies?

At first glance, the situation seems to be favorable for at least some of the workers to resume indexing. Judge for yourself: the three-year budget of the SFR includes a growing surplus. For example, for 2024 in the amount of 191 billion rubles. Which could be successfully sent to older working public sector employees.

But we must not forget that the financial burden on the Social Fund has already increased significantly this year. Due to the annexed territories (the republics of the LDPR, as well as the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions), the number of pensioners in Russia increased by 1.1 million people, and next year another half a million will be added to them. The payment of pensions from the budget will require substantial subsidies. Meanwhile, our federal budget itself remains deeply in deficit: over three quarters, the hole in it amounted to 1.7 trillion rubles.

Will there be funds for indexation for state employees?

According to the former Deputy Minister of Labor of the Russian Federation, trade unionist Pavel Kudyukin, financial problems may become one of the reasons for the government’s negative response to the parliamentarians’ initiative.

In addition, proposals of this kind must be accompanied by a financial and economic calculation of the burden on the Social Fund or contain an indication of additional sources of financing.

– In your opinion, are there any chances of the bill being adopted?

– The position of the Ministry of Finance on this issue has hardly changed; it has been argued for a long time: working elderly people do not need indexation. I believe this point of view is incorrect, but my assessment will not affect the situation in any way.

In addition, singling out from the general mass those pensioners who work in the public sector is even more incorrect in relation to other workers. After all, the rest find themselves in a situation of discrimination, “second-class” pensioners

– How should you act?

– Unambiguously prove the inconsistency of the position of the Ministry of Finance and raise the issue of indexing pensions for all workers. But singling out state employees separately is a strange story. Yes, and technically it will be difficult to carry out such a separation.

– What is the problem?

– An additional burden will fall on the Social Fund – called the Pension Fund. You will have to study where exactly the pensioner works. He can teach at school, and after work, for example, act as a concierge in his house. So what should we do then? If indexed, which part?