Some 720,000 people retired in 2019, down 3.9% from the previous year.
This brings the number of retirees with direct rights in France at the end of 2019 to 16.7 million, including 52% of women, according to a study by Drees, the statistical service of the Ministry of Health and Solidarity.
Among the retirees of a basic scheme, 83%, or 13.8 million retirees, receive a pension from the National Old Age Insurance Fund (CNAV) and 11.8 million also receive an Agirc-Arrco supplementary pension.
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At the end of 2019, 4.4 million people were also benefiting from a survivor's pension, paid in the event of the death of a spouse.
For 1.1 million of these beneficiaries, this pension constitutes their only retirement.
Women, more often widows, represent 88% of the beneficiaries.
The general scheme thus pays 2.8 million survivors' pensions and Agirc-Arrco 3 million.
Women's pension is 40% lower than men's
For the past twenty years, retirees have on average had a higher standard of living than that of working people - it was 2.9% higher than that of the general population in 2018, according to the Council's report. orientation of pensions at the end of 2020. But for several years, retirees have suffered an erosion of their purchasing power. This is due to the freezing of pensions, an increase in taxation and a rise in prices. At the end of 2019, the average monthly amount of the direct pension of retirees residing in France, after taking into account the possible increase for children, amounted to 1,503 euros gross (i.e. 1,393 euros net of social security contributions) . For all French pensioners, including those residing abroad, this amount is 1,432 euros gross.Women residing in France have a direct entitlement pension 40% lower than that of men.
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This average pension amount is decreasing: it has decreased by 0.6% in constant euros since 2014, mainly due to revaluations below inflation. If the average gross pension increased by 0.3% in current euros in 2019, it decreased by 1.1% in constant euros compared to 2018, because consumer prices increased at the same time by 1.5 %. The average net pension also decreases, but to a lesser extent (-0.4% in constant euros between the end of 2018 and the end of 2019), due in particular to the cancellation of the increase in the CSG rate for a certain number of retirees. It was one of the promises made by Emmanuel Macron to respond to the anger of the yellow vests: the cancellation of the 1.7 point increase in the CSG for retirees touching between 1,200 and 2,000 euros per month. The measure, which concerns 3,8 million households, entered into force on January 1, 2019.
