While most Ukrainian pensioners survive on a few thousand hryvnias, some representatives of the judicial, prosecutorial, and law enforcement systems receive tens, if not hundreds, of thousands. It is precisely with such “caste” approaches to pensions that the authorities want to put an end to - the Verkhovna Rada is preparing a decision that could radically change the situation.
The preparation of a bill that provides for the abolition of special pensions was publicly announced by the head of the Verkhovna Rada's tax committee, Danylo Hetmantsev. According to him, special payments for a small group of chosen ones are "an official, public and defiant recognition of the exclusivity of certain castes.".
We are talking about judges, prosecutors, security forces, and civil servants who receive pensions that are dozens of times higher than the national average. And all this against the background of a minimum pension of 2,361 hryvnias and a situation where more than half of pensioners receive less than 5,000 hryvnias.
The bill, which has already been considered by the relevant committee, proposes to abolish the current system of special pensions. Instead, new, more unified rules should be introduced that are closer to the mandatory pension insurance system. In particular:
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A long-service pension for prosecutors will be possible only after the age of 65 and only if they have 25 years of total service, 15 of which are in the prosecutor's office. This applies to those born after January 1, 1986.
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Receiving a pension is only possible after leaving the prosecutor's office, meaning that parallel service and payments will be impossible.
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Disability pensions will be assigned according to general rules - without additional benefits.
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Annual pension increases should be based on a coefficient determined for the entire system, without separate “linkages” to the salaries of judges or prosecutors.
Legally, no. In fact, yes. The law does not deprive the right to a pension at all, but completely destroys the usual system of special payments tied to positions, status, and decisions of special commissions. For the "elected" the conditions will become significantly stricter - both in terms of age and length of service.
There are several reasons. First, social justice. War, financial crisis, and pressure from society make the privileged pension system toxic. Second, the demands of international partners. A transparent pension system is one of the conditions for cooperation with the IMF. And third, it is an element of the political campaign: the authorities are preparing for the election cycle and trying to demonstrate the fight against "castes.".
The bill has not yet been voted on in the second reading. The final text has not yet been published, but the trend is clear: privileges should disappear, and the pension system should become one for everyone.
