Croatia Introduces New Pension Insurance Legislation

The news in Croatian

1. zakon  (m.)
   Skup pravila koja uređuju društvene odnose, donesen od strane vlasti. ↩︎
2. beneficija  (f.)
   Korist ili povoljnost koja se daje kao nagrada ili potpora. ↩︎
3. usklađivanje  (n.)
   Postupak ili radnja prilagodbe ili dovođenja u sklad. ↩︎
4. osiguranik  (m.)
   Osoba koja je osigurana prema sistemu socijalnog osiguranja. ↩︎
5. uvesti
   Provesti nešto novo u praksu ili uporabu. ↩︎
6. mjera  (f.)
   Radnja ili akcija poduzeta da se postigne određeni cilj. ↩︎

Translation

Text comprehension

Question 1: Who supports the new pension insurance legislation in Croatia?

Question 2: How many new members have joined the pension insurance in the last two years?

Vocabulary

Croatian	English
zakon  (m.)	law
beneficija  (f.)	benefit
usklađivanje  (n.)	adjustment
osiguranik  (m.)	insured person
uvesti	introduce
mjera  (f.)	measure

Read the full story

The Croatian government has unveiled a new law on pension insurance that promises to enhance the benefits received by retirees. The law, championed by Branko Bačić, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, was highlighted during a press briefing following a parliamentary majority meeting.

Among the key changes is a novel formula for adjusting pensions, now following an 85-15 ratio that favours the most advantageous index, be it wage growth or price inflation. Bačić expressed optimism, noting that the index aligned with the country’s average wage growth will particularly benefit retirees, highlighting the significant wage increases seen in recent years.

The legislation also seeks to introduce additional measures, such as a 13th pension or a special pension bonus, reducing penalisation for those who entered early retirement after turning 70, and raising the minimum pension threshold.

In addition to the pension reforms, Bačić pointed out a recent achievement in the national pension system: a record number of insurance contributors, now surpassing 1,720,000. This marks an increase of 100,000 contributors over two years, a sign of the country’s robust economic activity and the persistent demand for labour. The need for workforce expansion also brought attention to foreign labour policies, as Croatia seeks to address its growing economic demands.

The meeting also addressed other significant issues, such as the spread of foot-and-mouth disease in Hungary and Slovakia. Agriculture Minister David Vlajčić discussed measures to prevent the disease’s entry into Croatia, including a ban on importing live animals and certain agricultural products from the affected areas.

The recent employee strikes in the education sector were also on the agenda. Education Minister Radovan Fuchs reported a noticeable decrease in strike participation across regional areas, particularly in Istria, compared to initial nationwide strikes. Finally, the parliamentary group examined topics related to the Cemetery Act and the Act on Socially Encouraged Housing, which are currently under discussion in the Croatian Parliament.

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