Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev announced a drastic reform of Russia’s pension system this June, just as the World Cup began: the retirement age would be increased from 55 to 63 for women and from 60 to 65 for men. Although President Vladimir Putin tried to stay out of the debate, the announcement caused his approval rating to plummet from 80% to 63%. After hundreds of protests around the country, Putin went on television to tell the nation he would change the planned reform, revising the pensionable age for women to 60 and promising a significant increase in the value of pensions.
This PR campaign was only partly successful. The street protests petered out, but Putin’s United Russia party was punished at the polls. In September’s regional elections, four candidates from Putin’s party, all incumbent regional governors, were forced to take part in a second round of voting, unusual in Russia. In the Vladimir and Khabarovsk regions, the far-right nationalist opposition (the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, LDPR) won. The authorities annulled or postponed elections in Primorsky and Khakassia to stop the communists making headway.
The pace and scope of Russia’s pensions overhaul are striking compared to policies introduced elsewhere. By 2029, Russian workers will have to work five years more for their pension, as the retirement age will increase by six months a year. In 1998 the South Korean government also increased retirement age by five years, but phased in over 20 years. The government in Germany has raised the retirement age by a year, to 62, and France has raised it by two years, to 67, at a rate of one or two months a year.
Invoking ‘spiritual bonds' to bind society around its leader is of no use when it comes to such an unpopular measure Ilya Budraitskis
Defenders of the Russian pension reform cite arguments heard elsewhere. The population is ageing. In 2017, according to official Rosstat statistics, there (...)
