Serbia to raise pensions by 7.5% from Dec 1; North Macedonian pensioners demand linear rises
Belgrade plans a 7.5% pension boost from December 1 and higher public wages; in Skopje retirees want equal cash increases instead of proportional raises.
Serbia has announced a new round of income increases that will take effect this winter, while pensioners in North Macedonia are stepping up demands for a different model of adjustment. Belgrade says pensions and public-sector wages will rise ahead of the holidays; in Skopje retirees want equal, per-person (linear) raises rather than proportional increases.
Belgrade: pensions up 7.5%, public wages also rising
President Aleksandar Vučić presented the measures, saying the pension increase will start on December 1. The planned rise for pensions is 7.5 percent, which would lift the average pension in Serbia to €486.
Vučić said: "We wanted pensions to follow wages and not to jeopardise financial stability. For those who receive around €350 (40,000 dinars), the new pension will be about €375, while those with higher incomes will receive a corresponding increase."
Authorities also plan an 8% increase in wages across the public sector, and a new minimum net wage of €600 will take effect from January 1, the government says.
In North Macedonia, the announcement in Belgrade has reignited debate among retirees about how adjustments should be made. Many pensioners argue the current percentage (proportional) model deepens inequalities between those with higher and lower pensions.
The Initiative Board for Linear Increase demands that the next pension re‑indexing be legislated as a flat, equal cash rise for all pensioners before the March adjustment. They argue budgetary funds earmarked for increases should be split equally among recipients.
Members of the board told reporters: "It cannot be that someone with a 90,000 denar pension receives an increase of 3,000 denars, while someone with 20,000 denars receives only 600 denars, when living costs rise equally for everyone!"
They added: "All parameters for education and service are already built into the initial pension solution, but after retirement we are all equal." The group has called on Minister of Social Policy, Demography and Youth Gjoko Velkovski to adopt the linear formula in law ahead of the next scheduled revaluation in March.
Photo: Unsplash, TresoriValut
