Pension Hike Proposal Sparks Debate on Fairness in Vietnam

The proposal by Vietnam's Ministry of Interior to increase pensions by 8% starting July 1, 2026, has ignited a fervent discussion among Thanh Niên readers. While the intention is to provide relief to retirees, the method of a uniform percentage increase has raised significant concerns about exacerbating existing inequalities.

“

Increasing pensions like this further widens the gap between pension levels. All levels should be increased by the same amount (about 500,000 VND/month) so as not to increase the gap between rich and poor.

Many readers, like dohanzdo@gmail.com and Hữu Hải, argue that an 8% raise disproportionately benefits those already receiving higher pensions. They fear this will widen the gap between the rich and the poor among the elderly, suggesting a fixed amount increase (e.g., 500,000 VND per month) would be more equitable. Duong Van Xuong further points out that those who retired later already receive higher pensions, and a percentage increase will only amplify this disparity, advocating for a mechanism to 'preserve the value of the retirement point' for intergenerational fairness.

“

Those who contributed more or less have already been accounted for when they retired. Increasing by percentage like this seems correct but leads to increasingly large disparities.

Alternative proposals are abundant. Some readers advocate for a progressive increase, where lower pensions receive a larger boost. For instance, one suggestion is to raise pensions below 5 million VND to a flat 5 million VND, with decreasing percentage increases for higher brackets (10% for 5-8 million, 8% for 8-15 million, etc.). Others propose additional allowances for those earning below 6 million VND, with Cường Trịnh emphasizing the critical need to control the prices of essential goods and services to support retirees' living standards.

“

The Ministry of Interior's choice to increase pensions by 8% is very correct according to the 'contribution-benefit' principle. If we keep 'sharing,' it will be unfair to those who contributed highly and served for a long time.

Conversely, a significant portion of readers supports the 8% increase, emphasizing the principle of 'contribution-benefit' inherent in social insurance. Hà Nguyễn argues that this aligns with the system's logic where higher contributions yield higher benefits and positively influences current contributors. Cự Phạm Đình and Minh HHT echo this sentiment, stating that pensions reflect past contributions and that equalizing increases would be unfair to those who contributed more over their careers. They believe that if one desires a higher pension, they should contribute more during their working years, rather than seeking a 'leveling' of benefits.

“

Low pensions are due to low social insurance contributions during working years... If you want a high pension, you should increase contributions while working.