Seniorenbund calls for cost transparency in Austrian pension debate

Ingrid Korosec, President of the Seniorenbund, is calling for 'cost truth' in the ongoing debate regarding Austrian pension expenditures. During a press conference in Vienna, Korosec argued that approximately 27 percent of the 36 billion euros attributed to the state pension fund are actually social, health, or family benefits rather than direct pension payments.

Korosec highlighted that the 'minimum pension' compensation, which totaled 1.3 billion euros in 2025, functions as a poverty reduction measure, and that child-rearing credits should be classified as family benefits. She also criticized the inclusion of 1.8 billion euros in rehabilitation costs for active workers within the pension budget, calling the practice 'absurd.'

According to the Seniorenbund, if these non-pension costs are removed, the pure statutory old-age pension for workers, employees, the self-employed, and farmers would stand at 14.2 billion euros. Additionally, Korosec suggested that recalculating civil servant pensions by removing employer and employee contributions would reduce federal expenditure by 18 percent, down to 13.6 billion euros. Birgit Gerstorfer of the Pensionistenverband also joined the call for a fair, fact-based discussion to avoid 'alarmism and panic-mongering.'