OECD: Greek Retirees Have the Third Highest Pensions in the World

While most economic news originating from Greece has been negative over the last few years, a small glimmer of good news appeared this week. According to a new study by the Organization for Economic Coopertion and Development (OECD), Greek pensioners receive the equivalent of 98 percent of their average income, putting them at third highest among OECD’s 34 member countries. 

While most economic news originating from Greece has been negative over the last few years, a small glimmer of good news appeared this week. According to a new study by the Organization for Economic Coopertion and Development (OECD), Greek pensioners receive the equivalent of 98 percent of their average income, putting them at third highest among OECD’s 34 member countries. 

Although Greece has suffered more than most European nations following the global recession of 2008, the OECD study has turned into a point of pride among the Greek people—and for good reason. Thanks to these incredible pensions, only 7 percent of Greek citizens over the age of 65 live below the poverty level. The average for seniors in poverty among OECD nations remains at 13 percent. Those considered poor, though not necessarily in poverty, constitute citizens who receive an income that represents less than 50 percent of their average household income while employed.

The OECD study, titled “Pensions at a Glance 2015,” rated Greece third after Luxembourg and France. Luxembourg’s pensioners received an income equivalent to 106 percent of their average income when working, while French pensioners received 100 percent. The average rate among all 34 OECD nations was a mere 87 percent.

The report also found that Greece had higher than average supplementary pensions. An impressive 66.8 percent of Greek pensioners received supplementary funds. Of course, these pension levels should not shock most people because 14.5 percent of Greece’s gross domestic product (GDP) goes to pensions. By comparison, the average among all 34 OECD nations was just 7.9 percent. 

Unfortunately, these numbers belie a few economic realities. They are couched in terms of percentages of the pensioner’s income while employed, and Greek incomes actually average much lower than the OECD average (20,168 euros in Greece, compared to 33,036 euros overall). 

In Greek Reporter, OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria said of the pension study: “Most governments have made important efforts to bring public pension systems on a sustainable path, while these are steps in the right direction there is now a growing risk in some countries that future pensions will not be sufficient.”  He added, “The long-term challenge is to design policies today that are flexible enough to adapt to the uncertainties of tomorrow’s world of work, while ensuring adequate living standards for retirees.”