The French have protested against a planned pension reform. But in fact, the country's pension system is fairly generous when compared with many

Too little, too late? Comparing Europe's pension systems

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2023-03-26 14:30:02

The French have protested against a planned pension reform. But in fact, the country's pension system is fairly generous when compared with many others in Europe. In several countries, people work much longer.

French President Emmanuel Macron wants to raise the retirement age in France from 62 to 64. His plans have sparked protests and strikes across France.

But in a number of other European countries, people are shaking their heads at the vehemence of the French demonstrations. They already work to an older age before being eligible for pensions. In Germany, for example, the pensionable age is to climb gradually to 67, starting from 2024.

"It is always hard to compare pension systems because they are all very complex and very different. But this comparison is skewed," says Ulrich Becker from the Max Planck Institute for Social Law and Social Policy, which compares pension schemes from around the world with its "Pension Map."

That is because the rise that has brought so many out to protest in France is actually an increase in the earliest age at which paid workers can retire without deductions from their pensions. Previously they had to work for 41-and-a-half years. After the reforms, it is supposed to rise to 43 years.