Following Mattle’s Proposal

AK President Rejects “45 Years to Retirement”

Renate Anderl, President of the AK: “Let’s make the world of work perfect so that everyone can be employed!”(Bild: Mario Urbantschitsch)

“Before we discuss working longer, we need to fix the world of work,” said AK President Renate Anderl. She described the proposal by Tyrol’s Governor Anton Mattle (ÖVP) to allow retirement only after 45 years of work as the wrong approach.

The debate over the future of pensions is running high. While Tyrol’s Governor Anton Mattle (ÖVP) is calling for a reform that would tie retirement eligibility to 45 years of work, the president of the Chamber of Labor (AK), Renate Anderl, is firmly opposed. Her appeal: Move away from the debate over raising the retirement age and toward improving working conditions for older workers.

“Before I discuss what we could all do beyond the age of 65, I’d much rather discuss the world of work,” Anderl clarifies.

“Making the World of Work Perfect”
Mattle had proposed that, in the future, the retirement age should no longer depend primarily on age but rather on the number of years of contributions. Anyone who can demonstrate 45 years of work should be able to retire at 65; those with fewer years would have to work longer. This would particularly affect college graduates. Time spent providing care and support should count toward the total. However, according to Mattle, the earliest possible retirement age should remain at 65. So anyone who started an apprenticeship at age 15 would still have to work until 65.

Tyrol’s Governor Anton Mattle would like to make retirement in Austria contingent on having accumulated 45 years of contributions. According to Mattle, however, the earliest possible retirement age should remain at 65.(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

Anderl considers this model counterproductive. In her view, it would particularly affect those who are already disadvantaged: women with many career breaks and people with lengthy education. Instead of talking about 45 years of work, she says, we should focus on the pressing problems in the labor market.

“Let’s make the world of work perfect so that everyone can be employed,” Anderl urges. That means: age-appropriate jobs, better health promotion, and, above all, an end to discrimination against older workers. Mattle’s proposal misses the mark, she argues, because it ignores the reality of many workplaces.

One-third of Unemployed Women Retire
The figures support the AK’s criticism: “Nearly one in three women does not retire from employment,” Anderl warned. More than half of companies with 20 or more employees do not employ a single woman over the age of 60. This gap cannot be closed by raising the retirement age, but only by providing real opportunities in the labor market.

“Raising the retirement age is the wrong approach. It does not lead to longer employment, but often directly to unemployment,” said the AK president. This connection is a “complete fairy tale.”

Incentive System Instead of Compulsion
As a key solution for increasing employment among older workers, the AK continues to advocate for a bonus-malus system. Companies that retain and hire experienced employees should be rewarded. Companies that weed out older employees should be required to pay a penalty.

“I don’t understand those companies that loudly protest against the bonus-malus system. After all, if I treat my employees fairly and keep them on the job until they reach retirement age, why should I be afraid of it?” said Anderl. This is the only sensible way to combat poverty in old age, she added, rather than raising the bar for retirement with ever-new requirements.

AK President Warns of Poverty in Old Age
Women in particular would be especially affected by a model based solely on years of contributions. Due to raising children and caring for relatives, they often have longer breaks in their careers. Anderl: “Many women would then not even reach the 45-year mark—not because they’ve taken advantage of the best educational opportunities, but because they’ve had many career breaks. And then they’d also be forced to work longer.”

Anderl is calling on policymakers to act now. She says better recognition of child-rearing periods, more childcare spots, and genuine wage transparency are necessary to close the income gap.