Seven in 10 (70 per cent) of Austrians are supportive of mandatory company pension plans, research from Austrian pension provider Valida has revealed.

The research, which was presented at a press conference, surveyed around 1,900 people in Austria aged 18 to 60.

It also asked respondents whether one could imagine living well on the future state pension, to which 58 per cent answered no, 30 per cent said they couldn’t answer and 17 per cent said yes.
 
This is even lower for those in underrepresented groups, as 12 per cent of women said they could imagine living well on the future state pension, while 13 per cent of those under 30 are confident.

The future pension gap, the difference between the last salary payment and the first pension payment, is estimated at €1,243 - a significant increase compared to the last survey in 2022, €824 at the time.

"The pay-as-you-go pension system is not currently convincing Austrians. Especially among women and young people, the proportion of those who do not assume that they will be able to live well on their later state benefits is very high,” Spectra managing director, Stephan Duttenhöfer, said.

“This leads to broad acceptance of supplementary funded measures.”

Almost seven in 10 (69 per cent) of respondents welcomed the Austrian Federal Government's plan to promote working in old age by introducing a partial pension, while 61 per cent supported raising the retirement age for the corridor pension.

Meanwhile, 47 per cent approved of pension splitting, which benefits parents with longer childcare periods.

The research also showed that 38 per cent were in favour of a one-off or gradual increase in the retirement age, while 59 per cent demanded that the state generate additional funds for pension payments by investing in securities.

It also found that there was a desire among respondents for second pillar pensions to be expanded much more strongly.

Currently, around 90 per cent of pensions come from the first pillar pensions, while only 4 per cent come from second pillar pensions.

On average, 26 per cent of respondents would like to see the share of the second pillar increase.

In addition to this, 69 per cent called for company pension solutions to be introduced on a mandatory basis for every employee.

A broad majority (80 per cent) supported tax exemption for personal contributions to the pension fund, while 44 per cent of those surveyed would be willing to reallocate part of their salary to pension fund contributions.

The research also showed that 80 per cent of Austrians agree that the new severance pay should generally be used as a later supplementary pension and that early payment should only be possible in financial emergencies.

Valida Vorsorge Management CEO, Martin Sardelic, said: "The survey results clearly show how much a clear majority would like to see company pension schemes strengthened. We are particularly pleased that seven out of 10 pension fund customers are very satisfied or satisfied with their company pension solution."

Adding to this, Valida Vorsorge Management member of the board of directors, Philipp Mayer, explained that some reforms could strengthen the Austrian pension fund system to meet future requirements.

He suggested that company pension solutions should be taken into account in all collective agreements to enable all those currently employed to receive a supplementary pension from the second pillar.

“In order for everyone to be able to contribute to the increase in their supplementary pension for themselves, a legal entitlement to the reallocation of salary parts as a contribution to a pension fund would be required,” he added.

He also presented a concept for modernising the pension fund system that does not involve any additional financial outlay, this is a pension fund system life-phase model which would adapt investment strategy to age.

“For young people, dynamic investment is recommended due to the higher long-term earnings opportunities. Pensioners, on the other hand, are helped by a conservative assessment to minimise fluctuations in the amount of payouts,” he said.

"Our concept of a life phase model for all would not involve any additional financial effort. However, it would open up the possibility of taking better account of the situation of the beneficiaries in investment decisions and investing the available capital more profitably".

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