€200 bonus, because it is not fair that pensioners take it too

Heavier salaries and pensions in June or July. As soon as this is technically feasible, the government will release a file €200 bonus One-time for all employees, the self-employed and retirees whose annual income is up to 35,000 euros. The measure launched by the Cabinet this week aims to alleviate part of the cost of living that families accuse of skyrocketing bills and the ever-rising prices of many consumer goods and services. The number of beneficiaries will be 28 million, roughly one in every Italian resident in Italy. This brings the total cost of the initiative to around 5.6 billion euros. This measure in itself is very tangible, as it seeks to give purchasing power to families. The income ceiling isn’t too high, but it’s not too low either.

A bonus of 200 for retirees is bullshit

However, the €200 bonus for retirees is valid up to a certain point in terms of social justice. If it is intended to train the effectseconomic inflationActions must be taken regarding employment income. ISTAT just said that in the first quarter employee wages grew 0.8% on average, well below inflation. This was 6.4% in April. Therefore, it is the workers who lose purchasing power. Even the self-employed suffer, given the high prices that the companies themselves suffer due to the high costs of production.

Fortunately for them, retirees already have their paychecks indexed with inflation by law. Of course, this happens with a delay of a year, but there is no doubt that from next January they will receive the necessary increases based on the ISTAT’s Freedom of Information Index, that is, the increase in the cost of living. At this point, they will find themselves receiving a €200 bonus this year and the increments the next.

In practice, as inflation rises, they will also profit.

Inequality between retirees and workers is growing

Watch out, no one wants demagoguery by claiming that retirees are a privileged class. We know that many of them have controls so low that they are not enough to live in dignity. But we note the inequality of treatment between generations. It is not a new fact. According to the data of the Bank of Italy itself, at the end of the 1990s, the assets of young families were slightly higher than the average assets of the elderly. In 2016, the wealth of elderly people was on average 12 times higher than that of young people. In less than twenty years, a disturbing upheaval has occurred in the social and economic framework.

It is easy to understand why this happens. While the real income of Italians in the past 30 years has actually fallen – a unique case in the OECD region – pensions have grown in line with inflation. Retirees have increased their incomes, and workers have seen them decrease. It certainly wouldn’t be the €200 bonus itself that would increase the inequality, but it certainly doesn’t make up for it. Above all, it is another emergency measure that overlooks fixes Necessary to reverse the downward trend of the Italian economy. Spending tens of billions within two years, while little would be enough to intervene to support purchasing power. But famous coverages were necessary, i.e. spending cuts. Not even Mario Draghi has proven his ability to overthrow him.

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