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ARMENIA'S PENSION OF DISCONTENT
EurasiaNet.org
May 15 2014
May 15, 2014 - 9:04am, by Giorgi Lomsadze
The Armenian government has revised its controversial pension
plan umpteen times, but many Armenians just don't like it. And the
government just does not give up.
The main problem -- mandatory salary deductions for a national
retirement plan -- was discarded after a wave of protests, battles
in parliament and a smack-down by the Constitutional Court. In a
rare policy-concession to the opposition, the ruling establishment
gave workers the discretion to opt out of contributing five percent
of their salaries to the pension fund, but now questions are asked
about how optional is optional.
On May 13, Armenia's parliament reluctantly approved in its first
reading a truncated, deductions-optional version of the original bill.
Some political parties welcomed the "free will" addition to the draft,
but still the ruling Republican Party of Armenia was the bill's lone
supporter. Others chose to abstain or oppose.
The most ardent critic of the pension scheme, and of the government
in general - the Armenian National Congress (ANC) - maintained that,
despite the compromise, a compulsory savings system has been forced on
Armenia. The government has the means to put pressure on public and
even private companies to force employees to make the transfers to
the pension fund no matter what their individual decisions, asserted
the ANC, RFE/RL reported.
The claim is debatable, but some media reports already alleged that
the government is putting pressure on public servants to keep pitching
into the pension fund.
Labor Minister Artem Asatrian denied these allegations, but skepticism
persists. In a country that has experienced several economic slowdowns,
the pension epic only highlighted the lack of public trust in the
government's ability to handle both the economy and people's savings.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/68374
EurasiaNet.org
May 15 2014
May 15, 2014 - 9:04am, by Giorgi Lomsadze
The Armenian government has revised its controversial pension
plan umpteen times, but many Armenians just don't like it. And the
government just does not give up.
The main problem -- mandatory salary deductions for a national
retirement plan -- was discarded after a wave of protests, battles
in parliament and a smack-down by the Constitutional Court. In a
rare policy-concession to the opposition, the ruling establishment
gave workers the discretion to opt out of contributing five percent
of their salaries to the pension fund, but now questions are asked
about how optional is optional.
On May 13, Armenia's parliament reluctantly approved in its first
reading a truncated, deductions-optional version of the original bill.
Some political parties welcomed the "free will" addition to the draft,
but still the ruling Republican Party of Armenia was the bill's lone
supporter. Others chose to abstain or oppose.
The most ardent critic of the pension scheme, and of the government
in general - the Armenian National Congress (ANC) - maintained that,
despite the compromise, a compulsory savings system has been forced on
Armenia. The government has the means to put pressure on public and
even private companies to force employees to make the transfers to
the pension fund no matter what their individual decisions, asserted
the ANC, RFE/RL reported.
The claim is debatable, but some media reports already alleged that
the government is putting pressure on public servants to keep pitching
into the pension fund.
Labor Minister Artem Asatrian denied these allegations, but skepticism
persists. In a country that has experienced several economic slowdowns,
the pension epic only highlighted the lack of public trust in the
government's ability to handle both the economy and people's savings.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/68374