Pensions will rise by 3.8% in 2024. With an equal revaluation in general terms, retirees in the Basque Country are consolidated as the recipients of the largest benefits. They charge an average of 1,687.48 euros in the system as a whole, which exceeds the Spanish average by 300 euros. In the general regime, the most numerous, men earn 2,144.92 euros on average, compared to 1,535.24 for women. They are 800 euros more than an Extremaduran and 475 more than a Murcian. Why is there such a difference?
The answer lies in the historical productive model and the salary level that comes with it. “A greater industrial weight is combined – traditionally with better paid and stable positions – and greater collective bargaining, with more strikes, which leave higher salaries and contributions to Social Security,” says Jon Bernat Zubiri, professor at the Faculty of Relations. Labor Studies of the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). It is the logic: higher salaries lead to higher contributions and greater stability in the activity prolongs careers. “The differential in pensions with the rest of Spain is greater than that in salaries, which has been reducing because the industry has been shrinking,” he explains. In the latter, the closure of key factories would be the main cause, as in the steel industry. The end of Altos Hornos and the industrial reconversion are an example. In the future, then, the distance would be reduced.
For now, the system is a reflection of salaries, which in the Basque Country are 20% higher than the average, according to the INE. At the bottom of the benefits are those from Extremadura (1,255.66 euros on average in the general regime with both sexes) and Andalusians (1,321.74). “The amount is linked to the contribution and the contribution period,” highlights Josep Lladós, professor of Economics and Business Studies at the UOC. In the Basque Country, scientific and technical occupations have more weight, he argues. “Productivity is higher and therefore salaries are higher,” he continues.
Where the occupation generates less added value, such as in agriculture or services, the pension is lower. In Catalonia (1,577.80 euros on average in the general regime) the retirement rate is below the Basque Country, Asturias, Madrid, Navarra, Cantabria or Aragon. “Catalonia creates a lot of work that requires highly qualified people and at the same time there is a great boost in social services, care or restoration, without high productivity and with a pool of low salaries,” analyzes Lladós. This leaves pensions higher than the average, but lower than the leading ones.
A negative point in the Basque case is that the gap between what a man and a woman earn is greater. The gap scales to 609.68 euros in the general regime, compared to the national average of 489 euros. “The sectors that generate the differential, with better salaries and contributions, tend to be very masculinized, such as the industrial sector,” says Jon Bernat Zubiri. Only Navarra (647.81 euros), Asturias (634.59) and Catalonia (625.44) make it worse. “Positions that require basic skills are occupied mainly by women, with a tendency toward temporary and part-time contracts; That leaves lower salaries and bases,” adds Lladós.
In addition to facing a higher cost of living in Basque lands, the benefits of its retirees help cushion inflation. At these ages, “a rise in the mortgage or rent has less impact on owning a home. The increase in food does have an impact, but the pension compensates. The average or general standard of living of the Basque pensioner is higher,” it is assessed by the UPV-EHU.
