By Danilo Gladow, Isabel Pfannkuche and Gunnar Schupelius
On average, pensioners in the capital have less in their accounts than recipients of citizen’s benefit. Anyone who has worked for 45 years gets paid less than someone who doesn’t work at all.
Since then, the flow of letters to our editorial team has not stopped. Every day readers write to us about how they are coping or not coping with their small pension. And they all ask the question why young able-bodied people who don’t want to work still receive such a generous citizen’s allowance.
The calculation is simple: the average gross pension in Berlin is currently 1,409 euros per month. The contributions for health and nursing care insurance are deducted from this and – depending on the exemption amount – taxes are also deducted.
The average net pension in Berlin is therefore below the benefits that recipients of citizen’s money (ALG II, formerly called “Hartz IV”) receive. Single people are entitled to 502 euros per month, and they are also paid rent up to 700 euros. There are also health and nursing care insurance, benefits in kind for furnishing your home, interest-free loans, free entry to many facilities, etc.
Something is wrong: either the pension is too low or the citizen’s allowance is too high. Things cannot stay the way they are now. We asked Berlin pensioners about this – you can read their clear opinion here.
Ursula Schade (76) from Wedding calculates how much of her pension remains as an accountant Photo: Sven Darmer
Ursula Schade (76) from Wedding: “I did an apprenticeship in a tailor’s shop and later worked as an accountant. Despite my disability pension, I’m currently working as a payroll clerk again – until the end of the year. I don’t have to go without anything for that long. Then I stop and get a monthly net pension of 1,117 euros. With 300 euros in housing benefit, that’s enough to live on, but it’s tight. I pay 435 euros for cold rent, plus 60 euros for heating and 40 euros for electricity. I spend around 200 euros on groceries. I am lactose intolerant and therefore can only eat certain things – these are often more expensive. 692 euros remain. The gap between citizen’s benefit and pension is unfathomable. If you have worked for 40 years, you have 1,000 euros at the end and if you don’t go to work, you also have 1,000 euros. This doesn’t add up!”
Uwe Liebler (80) from Lichtenberg doesn’t think the adjustment of citizens’ money is okay Photo: Christian Lohse
Uwe Liebler (80) from Lichtenberg: “I worked as a professional driver for 50 years and for some inexplicable reason I still received a 3 percent deduction, so I don’t quite receive the full pension. Just over 1000 euros net – I don’t get any more. The rent for my 3-room apartment in Lichtenberg is 578 euros. Luckily, my wife and I share the rent. We have been married for 60 years. Things aren’t looking any better for her with her pension. Otherwise, of course, we both still have the usual expenses for insurance, electricity and food. There is just enough money for both of us. And everything is becoming more and more expensive. That’s why I think it’s absolutely not okay if someone who doesn’t work now has more money than us. I also have someone I know who has never really worked – what can I say about that?”
Wolfgang Rabe (80) from Mitte doesn’t have much himself, but he gives it to the people who benefit from Citizen’s Money Plus Photo: Christian Lohse
Wolfgang Rabe (80) from Mitte: “I did everything back then. I was a welder, a locksmith, a car mechanic and I was also self-employed for a while. In total I have almost 50 years of work behind me. My pension is 1,200 euros net. Of this, 500 euros goes to rent for my apartment. Add to that the insurance and 50 euros for electricity – then there’s not much left. A large part of the rest is spent on food. It’s difficult these days. But: I don’t want to complain. I’m still doing relatively well. And if the people with citizen’s money soon have more at their disposal than I do, then so be it. I don’t care.”
Carmen Richter (75) from Köpenick absolutely cannot understand the increase in citizens’ allowance; it would force people to work Photo: Christian Lohse
Carmen Richter (75) from Köpenick: “At the time, I was a clerk in the Prenzlauer Berg district office. I have exactly 45 years of work behind me. Today I get around 1300 euros net. As a single person, I have to pay 650 euros rent for my beautiful 2-room apartment in Köpenick. After deducting insurance, heating and electricity, I still have around 400 euros, which I also have to use to buy things. I think it’s a disgrace that people who receive citizen’s benefit should now have more than me. Hardly any of them have probably worked for 30 years at a time. If someone is sick or is otherwise unable to attend, no question. They should get the money. But in my area alone there are so many young men who could work. When I ask why they don’t work, they tell me that they get support and work part-time. I would force these people to work – or there will be nothing.”
Thilo Fahrmann (80) from Moabit thinks that work has to be worth it again. Then some people would leave the citizen’s money behind Photo: Christian Lohse
Thilo Fahrmann (80) from Moabit: I get 1100 euros net pension. I worked as an editor and proofreader for 50 years. Most of my pension is eaten up by rent. I pay 580 euros for my apartment in Moabit. That’s actually still possible, but in relation to my pension it’s a lot. In addition, there are other monthly expenses such as electricity, heating, insurance – so I have a maximum of 200 euros left to live on. That’s why I don’t think the adjustment of citizens’ money is fair. Of course you can’t force people to go to work, but at the same time this inactivity cannot be supported by the state. Citizens’ benefit recipients cannot be satisfied with the money they have. The only way to get out of this is to work – but it has to be worth it.