The attitude towards pensioners is an indicator of social justice and ethical culture of society

Recently, the Deputy Minister of Social Policy, Darya Marchak, made a loud statement that the population should not count on a pension in the near future, but should independently work up financial savings for old age as much as possible.

“The Ukrainian nation is getting old. Now 18% of the population is 65+ years old, and the ratio of working people to pensioners is 1 to 1. That is, one working person already supports one pensioner.” – said Marchak.

The government believes that such a low ratio of workers and pensioners is an obstacle to increasing the size of pensions. In addition, due to the destructive actions of wartime, the country has experienced a demographic crisis, and the situation is unlikely to change for the better in the near future. Also, as they say, saving the drowning is the work of the drowning themselves. That is why Marchak advises to make one’s own savings for the formation of a pension.

However, against the background of such statements, the state reports on work on the introduction of basic social assistance. Let’s try to figure out what future pensioners can count on.

Let’s start with statistical data. As of 2024, there are 10.516 million people of retirement age in Ukraine. This number has slightly decreased compared to 2023 (10.687 million people). The leader in the number of pensioners is the Dnipropetrovsk region. (887 thousand). In second place in terms of the number of pensioners is Kyiv (752 thousand), and in third place – Kharkiv region. (723 thousand).

Since the beginning of 2024, the government has increased the amount of the minimum pension to UAH 2,361, the maximum pension is now UAH 23,610. So, the average amount of the pension is UAH 5,385. This indicator increased by 16.5% this year.

As we can see, certain improvements in the pension reform over the past two years have nevertheless been observed. The number of pensioners with a minimum pension decreased by 9.1%. Dynamic growth is observed in the category from 4,000, 5,000 and over 10,000 hryvnias.

According to statistical data, the amount of pensions in Ukraine is distributed as follows:

• over UAH 10,000 – 1,151,008 people (10.9%);
• 5-10 thousand UAH – 2,439,503 people (23.2%);
• 4-5 thousand UAH – 1,567,785 people (14.9%);
• 3-4 thousand UAH – 2,234,970 people (21.3%);
• 2-3 thousand UAH – 3,058,670 people (29.1%);
• less than UAH 2,000 – 64,601 people (0.6%).

The retirement age in Ukraine is 60, regardless of gender. But age alone is not enough for retirement, a person must also have accumulated work experience. In order to retire at the age of 60, one must have 31 years of experience, at 63 – 21, and at 65 – from 15 to 21 years of experience. If the pensioner is over 65 years old, and the seniority has not accumulated, then the state will assign assistance instead of a pension. Such assistance will amount to 30% of the subsistence minimum.

Also, Ukrainian pensioners can count on additional payments in the amount of UAH 1,000. There are two forms of payments:

• additional cash assistance;
• supplement to pension for permanent care.

The state plans to pay such assistance in the period from July 1 to December 31, 2024. The amount of assistance will depend on age and experience. Thus, pensioners aged 70 and older will receive assistance in the amount of UAH 500. Pensioners with 30 years of insurance experience will receive UAH 750. And pensioners with 35 years of experience and victims of the Chernobyl disaster can count on UAH 1,000.

Is the size of the pension in 2024 sufficient for a full life? Let’s calculate the average minimum needs of a pensioner per month:

• for food products – UAH 3,000;
• for payment of communal services – 1500 hryvnias.
• housing rent (if necessary) – UAH 5,000;
• for medicine and treatment – UAH 1,000;
• for clothes, hygiene products – UAH 1,000.

Obviously, a pensioner needs at least 10,000 hryvnias to support his life, provided he has a satisfactory state of health.

Pensioners in Ukraine are a vulnerable category of the population — having worked all their lives, they mostly receive a pitiful pension. In order to somehow survive, the elderly are forced to continue working or save on all their basic needs. This especially applies to those of them who are not helped by children or relatives.

It is quite clear that Ukraine has big problems with replenishing the state budget. But are pensioners to blame for this? The pension system is one of the key components of the social protection of citizens, but it is important to understand that the pension payments received by the elderly are not a gift from the state or social assistance. This money is earned income accumulated over their working life through contributions to a pension fund.

Each employee pays a certain percentage of his salary to the pension fund during his work. These contributions are accumulated in individual accounts and are kept until retirement. In addition, employers also make contributions for their employees. These are additional funds that help increase the total amount of savings that will be paid to the employee in the form of a pension.

Therefore, pension payments are the return of those funds that were paid by employees and their employers during their active working life. This means that retirees receive the same money that they have accumulated over many years of work. In addition, the government should understand that not all Ukrainians can “independently build financial savings for old age as much as possible.” First, most of them barely survive on their salary and have nothing to save. Secondly, how to save money in the face of constant instability in the state? Can banks or financial institutions be trusted for many years to come?

The low level of pensions creates a sense of social injustice. Pensioners who have contributed to the development of society deserve respect and decent living conditions. Society has an obligation to the older generations, it is important to understand that the current generation of young people will also become pensioners and they will find themselves in the same situation. The attitude towards pensioners is an indicator of social justice and ethical culture of society, and you should know about it.