The principle of raising the
Italian pension age to 67 "remains confirmed", Economy Minister
Pier Carlo Padoan said after meeting trade unions on lowering
the age limit for especially arduous jobs Thursday.
He said a negotiating "table" had been set up on heavy jobs
"to see whether we can detach them from the automatic hike
mechanism" in 2019.
Padoan went on to say there was a "possibility" to improve
the age-hiking mechanism laid down in a controversial 2011
reform named after then labour minister Elsa Fornero.
He said this could be done while respecting the budget
parameters set to keep the system sustainable in the long term.
Susanna Camussdo, leader of the biggest and most leftwing
union CGIL, said the unions would verify if there was a "real
willingness" on the part of the government to change the
mechanism and differentiate between jobs in another meeting on
November 13.
Padoan added that the unions had backed "many points" in the
2018 budget.
Labour Minister Giuliano Poletti said earlier this week there
needed to be talks "on a scientific basis" on the list of heavy
jobs with higher mortality rates that could be exempted from the
hike in the retirement age, so that those workers can retire
earlier than 67.
There has recently been talk of putting off the pension-age
hike, which is currently set to be triggered in 2019.
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