The pensioners’ movement is starting to collect signatures to equate minimum pensions with the SMI

The Movement of Pensioners of Euskal Herria launched this Monday a campaign to collect “thousands of signatures” in support of the Popular Legislative Initiative (ILP), registered in the Basque Parliament, which proposes a supplement to pensions in Euskadi that equalizes the minimum amounts to the Minimum Interprofessional Wage (SMI).

This movement formalized the registration of the ILP in the Basque Chamber last September and in November the Legislative Council accepted the start of its processing. They need minimum 10,000 signaturesas set out in Parliament’s regulations, to continue the initiative and they have until April 24 to do so.

If they ultimately reach that amount, which its initiators hope to well exceed, the ILP will end up as a bill before the plenary of Parliament, which will have to decide whether or not to continue with its consideration.

Today, the representatives of the Pensioners Movement appeared before the press in the House to announce the actions they will promote in this campaign, to collect signatures and to The Basque government and the parties that support it, PNV and PSE, who “do not put themselves in the profile” and support the processing of the law.

One of its spokespersons, Arturo Val del Olmo, has indicated that so far no parliamentary group has said no to its consideration and has confirmed that they will meet again in the coming months with the political parties to gather their support for the legislative processing of the proposal. account.

In concrete terms, the ILP demands the creation of a Basque system pension supplement which guarantees that all pensioners over 60 years old living and registered in the Basque Country have a minimum income equal to 100% of the SMI. In 2024, the minimum wage gross amounted to 1,134 euros, divided into 14 payments, and the Ministry of Labor and social and economic actors are currently negotiating the increase for 2025.

If an agreement were reached in Euskadi on its own SMI, this would be the reference, instead of the state standard, for the calculation of the pension supplement.

The spokespersons of the platform have recalled that in Euskadi one in three retirees has an income lower than the SMI and that 70% of them are women. According to them, the vast majority earn less than 850 euros per month.

They have assured that the Basque Autonomous Communityhas the authority and resources to adopt this law“.

The Pensioners Movement has announced that this will happen soon will hold an event in Bilbao to announce the support for their initiative to more than 250 relevant people and until April the pensioners will give lectures and organize various activities in the municipalities to collect signatures.