Not everyone who has worked all their life can ultimately live well on the statutory pension in Bavaria. Some people are even dependent on basic security. But not everyone gets them.
Munich – For many people it is an opaque, almost impenetrable labyrinth: the German pension system. For a long time, employees could rely on the fact that the statutory pension and the private savings account, into which they had paid over the years, would be sufficient for a carefree retirement at the end of their working life. That is no longer the case. Younger generations no longer count on the statutory pension; many of them are already making other provisions. But what about all those who will retire in 2024? What can employees in Bavaria expect - especially if they have been unemployed or even unable to work for a long time?
Pension in Bavaria: “The system has no statutory minimum pension”
In principle, a distinction must be made between statutory pension insurance benefits and basic security benefits, says a spokeswoman for the Bavarian State Ministry for Family, Labor and Social Affairs, when asked by our editorial team. “In principle, only those who have statutory pension insurance and fulfill the minimum insurance period of five years can be entitled to a pension.” There is no legally established minimum pension – neither at the federal nor at the state level.
Many retired women in particular are often in a bad position these days - many women from the baby boomer generation have often worked part-time or not at all for years and, in addition to taking care of the household, have taken care of raising children and the family. The amount of the pension depends on the “individual insurance biography” and the “amount of the statutory pension insurance contributions”. In other words: If you don't pay in, you don't get anything. The reality of pensioners in Bavaria is not just an indictment for women.
Basic security in Bavaria 2024: Pensioners and low earners will receive 563 euros
Basic security is intended for people whose income or assets are not sufficient to cover their living expenses. “The scope of services consists of the relevant standard rate and the expenses for accommodation and heating,” explains the ministry spokeswoman when asked. “Since January 1, 2024, the standard rate for single people has been 563 euros.” This is the same for all federal states.
Assumption of costs for heating and living
The costs for accommodation and heating are covered by the job center or the social welfare office. This is based on local rental prices. “The ongoing recognized costs for accommodation and heating per community of needs totaled an average of around 606 euros in Bavaria in December 2023, and 468 euros for people living alone,” the ministry said upon request. Since the rents in Munich are significantly higher than in the rest of Bavaria, the average cost coverage here is around 775 euros.”
Not everyone is entitled to basic security
But not everyone is entitled to such basic security. The Bavarian Ministry of Social Affairs also makes this clear. Two basic premises are always the same: firstly, that the income and assets are not sufficient to support oneself and secondly, the person lives in Germany not just temporarily, but permanently.
Apart from these basic conditions, according to the ministry, only two groups of people are entitled to basic security: people who are able to work and looking for work and are at least 15 years old, but have not yet reached the age limit for retirement (currently this is 66 years). The second group of people concerns those who have already reached old age or are permanently unable to work and who do not have enough money to live on.
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Many employees only find out much too late in their working lives how important it is to protect themselves against strokes of fate and possible loss of work when it comes to security in old age and what exactly the difference is between incapacity for work and incapacity to work.
What a long-term unemployed person gets when they retire depends on many factors
How much an individual actually has left when they retire can be subject to strong fluctuations. According to the spokeswoman for the Ministry of Social Affairs, the length and amount of the pension contributions paid are particularly relevant for the statutory pension, but also the individual circumstances, such as private pension provision or existing assets. Therefore, one can only make general statements for individual cases, said the spokeswoman.
However, the amount basically depends on the following aspects:
Whether there was an unemployment report without receipt of benefits or whether and which benefits were received,
During which period the unemployment occurred, because there were always legal changes in the assessment of pension law,
What type of periods under pension law - such as compulsory contribution periods and/or credit periods - could be taken into account for periods of unemployment,
What fee was used to calculate the services and
How the entire insurance biography is structured and how unemployment affects the overall pension calculation.