More than 63,000 pensioners in Saxony go to work

In Saxony, more and more women and men are working after reaching retirement age. At the end of 2024, a total of 63,424 pensioners in Saxony were in employment, according to an answer from the Ministry of Economic Affairs to a minor question from the parliamentary group Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) in the Saxon state parliament. More than 9,000 of those affected were even in the 75 to 85 age group.

BSW considers the need to work in old age to be scandalous

"The fact that people over 70 or even 85 still have to work is a socio-political scandal. Instead of talking about a higher retirement age, we finally need pensions that secure people's livelihoods," BSW parliamentary group leader Sabine Zimmermann told the German Press Agency. A clear and worrying trend has been evident in Saxony for years: "More and more people over the standard retirement age are being forced to continue working."

In total, the number of people of retirement age in employment rose by 11.5 percent between 2020 and 2024, explained Zimmermann. "Their number has more than doubled since 2005." For more and more people, the statutory pension is no longer sufficient in the face of rising prices.

Many senior citizens have to continue to toil despite decades of work

"The inflation rate was still up 2.0 percent in July 2025, driven primarily by more expensive services and high food prices. At the same time, rising rents and ancillary costs are placing a massive burden on households. For many senior citizens, this means that they have to continue to toil despite having worked for decades," said Zimmermann.

The BSW politician referred to statistics from the Federal Statistical Office, according to which expenditure on social welfare rose by 14.8 percent compared to the previous year, mainly due to the significant increase in costs for basic security benefits in old age. In Saxony, 19,920 people over the standard retirement age were already receiving such benefits in March 2025 - more than twice as many as 20 years ago.

BSW sees social year for pensioners as a mockery

Zimmermann also addressed an idea put forward by economist Marcel Fratzscher. The President of the German Institute for Economic Research had proposed a compulsory social year for pensioners in order to distribute the burden of demographic change more fairly. "Some of today's pensioners have up to 60 years of work under their belts and have already made their contribution to prosperity and society." The proposal is a mockery of older people.

"The BSW firmly rejects any further increase in the retirement age. Working until 70 or even 85 is unreasonable and contradicts the right to a dignified retirement," emphasized Zimmermann. Instead, what is needed is a fundamental reform of pension insurance based on the Austrian model, which also includes civil servants, members of parliament and the self-employed.

"Pensions of up to 2,000 euros must be made tax-free in order to strengthen the purchasing power of the older generation," is one of the BSW's demands. At the same time, measures are needed to limit the cost of living and massive investment in social housing so that housing in old age no longer becomes a poverty risk.