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17 May 2012

IPE: Austrian parliament finally approves reform of second-pillar pension system


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Austria's parliament has approved reforms to the second-pillar system, and has declared that amendments to the country's pensions law will not be the last. Major amendments to the law include the creation of a 'safety pension', with a lower discount rate but certain guarantees for a minimum pension.


The amendments also set out to make contribution schemes more flexible for employers, increase workers' choices on asset allocation, and improve pensioner representation on supervisory boards.

Finance minister, Maria Fekter from the conservative government party ÖVP, said the reform had been a "pressing issue" and would "bring improvements", but she added that it would not be the last reform of the second pillar.

The amendment had been passed with the votes of the two government parties ÖVP and the social democratic SPÖ, which has been sceptical about funded pension schemes and non-state retirement provision.

Pension fund association FVPK welcomed the reform, highlighting the amendment to new entries into existing old contracts with discount rates of 6 per cent or more. In a statement, it said: "The Austrian Pensionskassen system was created in 1991 at a time of high return expectations that today can hardly be fulfilled".

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