Talks on second pension pillar to begin on October 6

Discussions on the second pillar of the pension reform will begin at technical committee level on October 6, Labour Minister Marinos Mousiouttas said on Monday, with meetings to be held weekly before the issue moves to the Labour Advisory Body.

Speaking at the opening of a meeting of the Labour Advisory Body, Mousiouttas said the technical committee would meet every Tuesday to discuss the second pillar, while meetings of the advisory body would continue every Monday and Thursday.

He said the aim was to make enough progress to reach a framework agreement which could then be presented to parliament.

“We are ready to continue the dialogue every week, every Tuesday, and at some point it will be brought before the Labour Advisory Body, depending on the progress of the work, so that, if we manage to reach a framework agreement, we can inform parliament,” he said.

“We want the second pillar to move forward as well.”

Asked by Peo general secretary Sotiroulla Charalambous when the pension reform bill would be submitted, Mousiouttas said it would be tabled within days, but added that this “does not matter”, as discussions could continue after its submission.

“If there is anything we need to change, we will change it,” he said.

Mousiouttas clarified, however, that no separate bill on the second pillar would be submitted at this stage. Instead, the social partners would seek to agree on a framework and principles governing its introduction.

“It is clear that a bill will not be submitted, but there will be a roadmap framework with the basic principles governing the second pillar,” he said.

Sek general secretary Andreas Matsas questioned why legislation on the second pillar would not be submitted, saying the understanding had been that it would not be implemented at the same time as the remainder of the pension reform.

Mousiouttas replied that there was not enough time to prepare legislation on an issue on which agreement had yet to be reached.

“We have not agreed on anything, so how can it be submitted?” he said.

“We said that implementing the second pillar will take three to four years. The discussion will now begin.”

The minister also said meetings of the Labour Advisory Body would continue every Monday and Thursday, with the exception of October 1 and October 19, when he will be absent.