Unions denounce 'antisocial' pension reform as 'direct attack' on workers

The Independent Luxembourg Trade Union Confederation (OGBL) and the Luxembourg Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (LCGB) renewed their call for massive mobilisation on 28 June in protest of the newly announced pension reform and other threats to worker rights. The unions say that private sector employees, civil servants, and especially younger generations will be affected by what they call an "antisocial project": the pension reform launched by Prime Minister Luc Frieden.

By extending the required working years by three to five in order to qualify for a full pension, the Prime Minister "announced last week a frontal attack on our pension system" during his State of the Nation address, said the OGBL and LCGB on Monday, whose joint reaction had been eagerly awaited.

By hitting the red button on pension reform and more clearly revealing the CSV-DP government's intentions, Luc Frieden provoked the ire of the unions, who have already been on edge since autumn. That tension stems from the government challenging their authority to negotiate collective labour agreements – their core business, as Nora Back, president of the country’s largest union, described in her May Day speech.

The significant increase in the required contribution period "not only goes against the reform proposals developed by the unions, but also against the findings of a recent survey, which shows that a majority of people would rather support an increase in the contribution rate", the unions said, referring to the recent ILRES survey on pension reform. That survey indeed shows that 55% of taxpayers oppose the idea of working longer.

The unions point out "the vast majority of current and future employees and public servants have to work longer to qualify for a full pension," while adding that "the main burden of this unfair reform falls on the shoulders of young people, who are under pressure in terms of employment, housing, and purchasing power – and the 2012 reform had already hit them hard."

For the unions, this is an "antisocial project" that penalises younger generations. It is "a full-on attack against the very idea of inter-generational solidarity, a fundamental pillar of our public and collective pension system."

The union front is calling on "all young people", "everyone who stands in solidarity with their children and grandchildren", and "employees in the private sector and civil service" to mobilise en masse and join the large national demonstration on 28 June in Luxembourg.

While the contribution period is set to be gradually extended, "the minimum pension, on the other hand, is not being adjusted. The minimum pension – which primarily affects women – is insufficient to ensure a decent life in Luxembourg. This does not appear to trouble the Frieden government," the unions noted in passing.

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