Edouard Philippe on January 24, 2020. - PIERRE VILLARD / SIPA

  • The pension reform project was presented this Friday in the Council of Ministers.
  • The government took the opportunity to present new “typical cases” of careers.
  • Their methodology is disputed and only partially reflects real situations.

The government unveils a little more every day about pension reform. While the bill carrying this reform was presented this Friday in the Council of Ministers, and that the social conflict continues with a new day of mobilization, the executive has posted a new salvo of "standard cases" to project into reform. Civil servants, self-employed, employees: around 70 profiles are currently available on the site dedicated to the reform. There should be at least 300 in the end, according to the government's promises.

Exercise is perilous. The simulation methodology, explained in detail here, has been criticized by several observers. A widely researched article in Le Monde sums up the main criticisms: first, the government assumes that future pensions will always be upgraded in relation to wages, which is not guaranteed. Then, as the newspaper recalls, “the choice to study only people who start working at 22 [or 23] is not neutral. It conceals the debate on the pivotal age and the duration of contributions. The results of the simulations would therefore have been very different by introducing typical cases of people who start working at 20 or 24 years of age ”. In short, these "typical cases", which 20 Minutes has radiographed, are to be taken with great caution.

Civil servants and teachers: various fortunes

On the site, 36 standard cases of civil servants and 4 standard cases of teachers are available. For the latter, "universal" retirement will not benefit them. Whether they are part of the 1980 or 1990 generation, the teachers, according to the simulations, will have to work at least up to 66 years to have a pension higher than that provided for by the old system. For example, a school teacher born in 1980 and who would retire at 62 would have a pension of 2,227 euros gross monthly with retirement on points, against 2,335 euros in the system by terms, a loss of 108 euros monthly.

For other officials, the situation is much more favorable. According to the 20 minutes count, only 8 typical cases (out of 36 presented) will be disadvantaged by the reform. This is particularly the case for the Specialized Territorial Agents of Nursery Schools (Atsem) of the 1980 generation or administrative assistants (category C), who will have had few bonuses in their careers. The other typical cases of civil servants are all winners with point retirement, even if they leave at 62. Thus, a judicial magistrate (category A +) who would stop at 62 after forty years of career would see his monthly pension increase by 710 euros gross!

Employees: We will have to work longer

Out of ten typical cases posted online, only two are really advantaged by point retirement in all cases. These are employees born in 1980 or 1990 and who have experienced very significant career progression. For the others (SMIC employee, employee paid at average salary, part-time employee), the reform will not be beneficial for their pensions until they leave at 65 or 66 years of age. After this age, the gains can be significant, especially for low wages who can benefit from the minimum contribution (1,000 euros pension for a full career). Thus, an employee born in 1990, paid minimum wage all his life, and who would leave at 66 years (after forty-four years of career) would have a monthly pension of 1,708 euros gross with retirement points, against only 1,369 euros gross in the current system.

Freelancers: Better, but with more contributions

With the reform, the self-employed will also be included in the point system. For doctors, this will lead to a decrease in the future pension, mainly because their contribution rate will drop. For a doctor practicing in sector 1 and earning 40,000 euros per year, this rate will for example drop from 36% to 28%: his future pension will be reduced by 433 euros monthly.

Other professions, whose contribution rate must increase, will see their pensions largely revalued. This is for example the case of veterinarians, or nurses and physiotherapists. For the latter, the government plans an increase in pensions of up to + 80% for those who earn 80,000 euros per year. Finally, farmers and artisans / traders with low incomes should benefit from higher pensions with the point-based pension system, thanks to the contributory minimum (1,000 euros minimum pension), but only if they achieve a "full" career ( forty-three years old today).

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  • Edouard Philippe
  • Economy
  • Emmanuel Macron
  • Retirement
  • Pension reform