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The Greek Minister of Employment Yiannis Vroutsis said that, "For many years, we have maintained a fragmented social security system, which is expensive and mostly unfair and ineffective. With the new social security card that we have been preparing methodically, everything will change forever. In presenting the study carried out by the Centre for Planning and Economic Research, it will be proved that the decisions were before our eyes, but we either failed to see them, or even worse - we did not want or did not dare to see them."
So, let's have a look at the data provided by the new information system of Helios regarding the number of pensioners and pensions paid in Greece.In the state sector, the average pension amounts to 1,011.8 euro.
In the independent fund of the Bank of Greece, the average pension is 1,158.29 euro. In the insurance fund of the Journalists, the average pension amounts to 890.5 euro. In the insurance fund of independent professionals (engineers, doctors and lawyers), the average pension has reached 840.7 euro. In the largest insurance fund in the country on which the new insurance reform will be based, the Social Security Institute (IKA), the average pension does not exceed 705.89 euro. Moreover, within the fund, there are major differences between the various groups of people insured.
For the pensioners who used to work in the private sector, the average pension amounts to  639.85 euro.
At the same time, the average pension for employees in the Public Power Corporation (DEI)  is much lower than in the past, but obviously higher than the pensions of other sectors and amounts to 1,372.35 euro.
In the insurance fund of freelance professionals, the average pension is  735.69 euro.Within this fund, however, there are huge differences between the various groups of pensioners. For example, retirees of the former fund of freelance professions receive an average pension of 792.62 euro  compared to the 682.90 euro received by the pensioners of the former fund of traders, which is 567.04 euro for an average pension of the motorists' fund.
In the insurance organisation of the farmers (OGA), the average pension amounts to 431.62 euro.The fund for supplementary pensions grants an average pension of 181.03 euro. The data provided by the Helios information system also shows that 664,736 pensioners, or 25% of the total number, receive a pension lower than 500 euro. Moreover, this amount is not gross, as it is calculated before deductions are made for medical care or any other tax to the state.
Even if we increase the scale of pensions, summing up the main and supplementary pensions or other types of pensions (e.g. for widows), the global picture of the situation of pensioners is not much improved. Therefore 57% of pensioners or 1,509,763 people have an income of pensions under 800 euro gross. The total average income from all types of pensions for the month of July for all 2,656,855 pensioners in Greece amounts to only 869 euro gross.

Age Groups
According to the Helios information system, the number of pensioners in Greece in July was 2,656,855 people. Of these, 23% were aged over 81 years, 32% were aged 71 to 80 years, 40% were 51 to 70 years, and only 1% were pensioners under 25 years of age. Moreover, the highest pensions are received by pensioners of 56-65 years.
The majority of pensioners receiving old-age pension (constituting 19% of the total number of pensioners) were aged 66 to 70 years with an average pension of 1012.19 euro. Let us recall that in the calculation of average income from pensions, what is taken into account in addition to old-age pension is all other types of pensions (for disability, pensions for widows etc.) that a pensioner receives.
The total number of pensions paid in July is 4,480,450, comprising basic and supplementary ones, as the total amount is 2,309,715,534.28 euro.