23/08/2011
By Ilonka Oudenampsen
Adjustments to the Dutch pension agreement are not just wishes of the FNV unions, said the Christian Democrats and Labour Party today, after Social Affairs Minister Henk Kamp yesterday said he will follow the coalition agreements and all concessions to the unions will expire if the FNV unions vote against the agreement.
Members of the FNV unions will vote for the pension agreement on 12 September, but an early vote by FNV Bondgenoten already showed less appetite for the new agreement. FNV has asked Kamp to change its pension bill on two important issues.
Today, several politicians said that a majority of the cabinet has also asked Kamp to amend the bill to ensure that, after 2020, lower paid employees can also retire at 65 and that more prudence is added to the agreement so that pension funds do not take too many risks and spend more money than they have.
On Saturday, Kamp discussed a plan to give those on a low income ‘extra money’ between 62 and 65, which can help them mitigate the drop in income if they decide to stop working at 65. However, Roos Vermeij, member of the Labour Party, wondered how this would work and said she wanted a detailed plan on how the minister is going to carry out these plans.
However, despite several unions discarding the plans as not going far enough already, the politicians have not made a judgment yet and want to wait for extra details from Kamp.
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