Demand from retirees to “get a holiday bonus of 5 thousand 500 liras”
“We want the lowest pension, 5,500 lira, to be given to all retirees as a holiday bonus,” Kazım Ergün, Chairman of the Retirement Association of Turkey, said.
Kazım Ergün, Chairman of the Turkish Pensioners’ Association (TÜED), demanded that the bonuses of 1100 liras given to retirees during the Sacrifice and Ramadan holidays be increased to 5 thousand 500 liras, which is the lowest pension.
Reminding that the holiday bonuses were increased by 10 percent to 1100 liras in 2021, Ergün said:
“According to the study conducted by the Research Center of our association, the holiday bonus, which was half the minimum wage of 2 thousand 20 liras in 2018, corresponds to 12.93 percent of the minimum wage, which is 8 thousand 506 liras today. As can be seen, if we make a comparison over the minimum wage, if we consider the rate in 2018, if half of 8 thousand 506 liras were determined as a holiday bonus, today’s amount would be 4 thousand 253 liras.
Millions of retirees are waiting
Emphasizing that retirement bonuses have eroded significantly in the face of high inflation in recent years, Ergün said:
“All pensions have increased at the rate of inflation over the years. The lowest pensions were adjusted accordingly. Despite these increases, the holiday bonuses remained in place, except for the 10% increase in 2021. While in 2018, three quarters of gold were bought for 1000 liras, today one cannot even buy a gram of gold for 1100 liras. From the point of view of the social state, we want the lowest pension, 5 thousand 500 lira, to be given to all retirees as a holiday bonus.”
TÜED President Kazım Ergün stated that increasing the holiday bonus to 5 thousand 500 liras will give a sigh of relief to millions of retirees with the lowest monthly salary, and said, “Taking this step is a requirement of the social state, considering that the lowest pension amount corresponds to approximately half of the minimum wage applied. Millions of retirees are waiting for good news in this direction from the government,” he said. (AA)
