(de-news.net) – Felix Banaszak, the co-leader of the Green Party, has spoken in favor of a gradual increase in the effective retirement age, presenting the issue as a structural adjustment to longer working lives rather than as a direct or mechanical rise in statutory retirement thresholds. From his perspective, the average duration of working life in Germany should be recalibrated to reflect demographic developments and long-term population trends. Such an adjustment, he argued, would not be viable through age limits alone but would require a broader policy framework, including tighter constraints on early retirement options as well as expanded investment in occupational health protection and rehabilitation services. At the same time, he underscored that individuals who are demonstrably unable to continue working should retain access to retirement without facing substantial reductions in pension benefits.
Shaping an era of longer life expectancy
The proposal was explicitly grounded in rising life expectancy. Banaszak linked the debate over retirement age to the additional years of life gained in recent decades, maintaining that these developments necessitate a renewed public discussion about how longer life spans are divided between employment and retirement. In this context, he suggested that it was reasonable to consider allocating part of the increase in life expectancy to extended participation in paid work, rather than assigning all additional years exclusively to retirement.
In addition to adjustments to the retirement age, Banaszak expressed support for a more comprehensive restructuring of the pension system. He called for broadening the base of contributors by incorporating groups that are currently outside the statutory pension scheme, including members of parliament, newly appointed civil servants, and self-employed professionals. Alongside this expansion, he advocated the long-term stabilization of small and medium-sized pension benefits through the use of returns on capital investments, supplemented by additional tax-based financing where necessary, in order to ensure sustained adequacy and financial resilience within the system.
