Labor Commission will vote and dispatch the pension reform today – La Discusión 2024-02-25 04:43:08

This Monday, the session is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. where the Labor Commission of the Chamber of Deputies will vote until it is fully dispatched on the pension reform project promoted by the government of President Gabriel Boric.

Specifically, the initiative seeks to create a new mixed pension system and social insurance in the contributory pillar, as well as improve the Universal Guaranteed Pension (PGU) and establish benefits and regulatory modifications in the matter.

The project is extremely urgent, so parliamentarians must vote on the initiative until it is fully dispatched. Then it would go to the Finance Commission.

The Government’s proposal is that of the 6% additional contribution, 3% goes to a solidarity fund, 2% to individual contributions and 1% to strengthen female employment. However, this appears to be the great obstacle that the Executive has to overcome to move forward with this reform, of which several articles have already been voted on, in some cases with unanimity in the Commission.

In this regard, the presidential administration has given clear signs of approaching the 3% and 3% distribution position proposed by the Christian Democrats (DC). This means: 3% to improve “future pensions” (individual contribution) and 3% solidarity to improve “current” ones, commented the deputy and president of the DC, Alberto Undurraga.

The Government would have the votes in the Labor Commission to approve the reform. However, it is in the Chamber where the situation becomes more complex, even more so considering that Chile Vamos has expressed rejection of the distribution system.

For example, the deputy of Renovación Nacional (RN) Diego Schalper commented that “the Universal Guaranteed Pension has changed in a very pragmatic way the way we understand the pension debate. For now, the Universal Guaranteed Pension alone would be equivalent to five contribution points. So, trying to insist on that same logic when the country has changed is not taking this debate seriously.”

This was shared by the deputy of the Independent Democratic Union (UDI) Guillermo Ramírez, who on Sunday sent a direct message to the Government: “Please understand well, we are never going to vote in favor of creating a distribution system. Not even one point, because it is unfair, because it is not fair that formal workers pay informal workers, even though they have earned better salaries.”

For his part, the deputy for Political Evolution (Evópoli) Jorge Guzmán indicated that the 6% additional contribution should go to individual capitalization and solidarity should be done with general taxes, through the PGU.