Most recipients of the occupational pension are men: a rare form of retirement

Occupational pension There is a foreign form of retirement for many. According to a recent study, it fulfills its purpose as a special pension for heavy workers, but only a few use it.

The occupational pension entered into force in 2017 as part of the pension reform. It is a special pension for those who have worked long for a long time. It is possible to retire at the age of 63 if there is at least 38 years of hard work and work capacity is impaired.

The occupational pension does not require the same impairment of working capacity as an invalidity pension.

A study by the Finnish Center for Pensions (ETK) shows that the occupational pension fulfills its original purpose as a special pension, but is used little. Only 459 people retired from 2018-2023. There were about 1,500 applicants.

Retirement Let’s usually move on from male -dominated industrial work.

“Typical professions are paperwork, carpenters, building woodmen, metal industry process workers, welders and gas cutters, but also truck drivers,” lists the Senior Research. Aart-Jan Riekhoff Effect: Sta.

On average, retirees have had 44 years of work at the age of 63.

The most common grounds for retirement were musculoskeletal disorders, the number of diagnoses in 2018-2023. Few had a mental disorder or cardiovascular disease.

More than 90 percent There are men of the recipients of the occupational pension. Statistics also show that women’s applications are more often rejected than men.

In most cases, the reason for the rejection is that the work done was not considered sufficiently pregnant or its pregnancy could not be shown. For men, this was based on a rejecting decision in 73 % and for women in 79 % of cases.

The difference between women and men can be due to many reasons.

“It may be more difficult for women to prove the pregnancy of their profession. For example, in male -dominated sectors, such as the process industry, there may be more information and support for applying for a occupational pension. They may be provided by, among other things, trade unions and occupational health care,” Riekhoff says.

The application must be accompanied by a medical report and employers’ descriptions of the work.

“It is known that women change jobs more often than men. Therefore, it may be harder for them to collect the necessary information from their careers.”

Work The stress is assessed on physical grounds, such as stressful working movements and work postures, and severe loading of the respiratory and circulatory system or muscles.

However, the criteria for the occupational pension also include mental stress. For example, it can be working in an interactive work that is particularly demanding and causes exceptional mental strain. The criteria also include constant alertness, tasks requiring special attention or an obvious threat of violence.

On the public side, such conditions may be met, for example, in prison or demanding social work, says pension manager Merja Paananen Pension insurer Keva.

“However, most of our applicants justify their application with physical exertion. Quite often we also receive applications that invoke both physical and mental stress.”

According to Riekhoff, in general, it seems that pension decisions emphasize the physical pregnancy of work.

Research institute According to Labore, the expectation was to retire a couple of thousand people per year. The opposite happened, as the number of retirement is significantly lower.

“It seems that because the criteria are strict and the application process is demanding, this is not an easy route out of work,” Riekhoff ponders.

Applying for an occupational pension is multi -stage and requires comprehensive documentation.

Last year, public pension insurer Keva handled about one hundred applications on occupational pension. Merja Paananen says that the figure has risen every year, but remains small compared to other forms of retirement.

He also mentions strict criteria when assessing the stress and consumer nature of the work.

“The work has also had to be full-time, just to the end of his career. If, for example, the person has retired and part-time work, for example, the work is not considered to have been full-time.”

Tight Due to the criteria, many applications will be rejected, with about 75 % in Keva between 2023 and 2024.

“However, about half can be granted a partial disability pension. It is up to the applicant whether he will receive it,” Paananen says.

He mentions that the retirement pension does not take into account the years before the old age pension. Here it is different from an invalidity pension. It includes a retirement part of the upcoming time that would accumulate if he could continue to work.

However, the rise in retirement age can increase the popularity of the occupational pension, Riekhoff estimates. According to him, the extending time for pension payment and the better awareness of the pension can increase its use.

“However, a demanding application procedure may mean that only certain groups are applying for a pension. For example, there may be more information and support in large workplaces.”

Paananen also thinks that the occupational pension is gaining popularity, but due to the strict criteria, it may not become any mass pension.

Riekhoff points out that the occupational pension was not touched by the latest negotiations as a pension reform.

“So it has not been considered removal. Nor have it been considered necessary to make changes to the award criteria.”