July 4th, 2015, 12:31 pm
QuoteOriginally posted by: traderjoe1976The issue is not so much about youth unemployment. It has more to do with the youth lacking the skills which are in demand. You have to recognize that Greek citizens have the right to work anywhere in Europe. The skills which are in short supply are computer skills, technology skills, engineering skills, healthcare (doctor and nursing) skills. When these skill sets are in short supply and Greek youth have the right to work anywhere in Europe, why complain about unemployment..Good remarks, actually German hospitals, organize regularly over the last years events in Athens trying to fish doctors and healthcare professionals. On the other hand, language and cultural barriers excluded, relocating to another country might be an easy decision when you are young, not so easy when you are a mid career professional with family and a settled life. It can be seen as sort of exile. Many people just dont want to move to another country. Its their right to demand to have a job in their own homecountry.Quote62-year-old person who works would pay the government $20,000 per year in taxes. 62-year-old person who sits on the beach costs the government $35,000 per year in pension and healthcare. USA has already raised retirement age to 67 years as life expectancy has increased. No one wants to retire at 62-years and then sit on the beach for 30 years while the young people have to pay the taxes to support themI guess you are missing something here. every employee has 14% of his gross monthly salary withheld for pension and healthcare contributions. The residual is subject to income tax. His Employer top these contributions with another 28% of the gross salary. This is obligatory by law. For certain hazardous jobs the rates are double. Those on free lancer status make their own insurance contributions, as fixed monthly sums that increase with age. Again its obligatory. Consequently, a 62 years old man may have already paid contributions for 40 or more years. His pension is not taxpayers' money, its money already contributed over the years by himself and his employers. A pension is a claim, not a welfare benefit. Moreover, pension income is subject to income tax and healthcare contributions. If the contributions made have been missmanaged is another issue, but trying to depict pensioners as sort of parasites is completely misleading.The problem is that for certain types of people the foresees an option of "premature pension". One case coming to mind, is that women working in public sector for 20 or more years, with 3 or more kids, one of them still under 18 can have a pension at 53 with a reduced pension. They can stay at work in order to increase their expected pension income but keep the option to exit at any time. Troika demands this to be stopped, as its perceived as parasitic to other pensioners, accepts only mothers of handicapped children to be excluded. Tsipras refuses this reform as this will harm his clientele, a big part of his voters work in public sector...