With a clear message, seniors from Burgenland are turning concerned to the politicians who will be in charge in Austria in the coming months. Many elderly people are concerned about their pensions and fear cuts.
Plagued by the fear of financial losses, more and more retirees report not only to the editorial staff of ‘Krone’. “Speaking days are a very important part of the work in my political life. There is a lot of demand for appointments, especially seniors are currently looking for advice,” says SPÖ representative Verena Dunst, who knows the problem all too well.
There is only money for the necessary things
“We can already afford the most necessary things,” says Erika Schwendenwein (83). “It’s good that we grew up frugal, we’re not used to anything else our whole lives,” notes her husband Gustav (88). The two will have been married for 65 years in May. He commuted to Vienna during the week. Now the couple has to survive on their pension plus compensation allowance.
Fear of cuts
“When I was 18, our daughter was born, and three years later our son. There was no childcare, so I had to stay home. “Later I took care of my blind mother, then I took care of my mother-in-law – all without being registered,” the now 83-year-old recalls. The couple’s appeal to high politics: “Please don’t cut our pensions, otherwise nothing will work!”
Many seniors share the Schwendenwein family’s concerns. Like Elfriede Gröller. Her husband died 23 years ago. She has to make do with a small widow’s pension. She is not entitled to anything because she was only able to work for eight years.
Dunst criticizes
‘There are enough such fates. On average, women receive 40 percent less pension than men, which is mainly due to more part-time work while raising and caring for children,” Dunst explains. She insists, among other things, on a higher valuation of these periods in the pension calculation. Their message is just as clear: “No budget restructuring at the expense of the older generation!”
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
