Riscatto Laurea

Free pension credit for university studies for teachers and school staff—ANIEF: “Retirement is too far off; let’s follow the example of armed forces officers.” ANIEF National President Marcello Pacifico has renewed the call for a bill—currently under Senate review—that would allow school staff to count their post-secondary university years toward their pensionable service. Pacifico drew a comparison with other professions: an armed forces officer can benefit from free pension credit for their university degree and retire with a full pension as early as age 59, whereas school employees are denied this option. The union leader also pointed to the example of Germany, where teachers can claim pension credit for their degrees at no cost. Costs incurred by teachers for university education: According to Marcello Pacifico, most teachers today must obtain a university teaching qualification and hold either a Master’s degree or the older four- or five-year degree. One in four teachers—having gone through programs ranging from the old SSIS and TFA to subsequent specialization courses—has had to complete a one- or two-year specialization program that was not only unpaid but actually required tuition fees, with restricted enrollment similar to medical school. Some teachers also have backgrounds involving PhDs or research fellowships. Pacifico argued that the State should reward and support university education rather than recognizing it only for certain workers. ANIEF’s call for rapid review of the bill: The bill was submitted to the Senate’s 7th Commission to secure, at the very least, subsidized pension credit terms. The union leader urged a swift review and approval of the proposal—potentially via a government decree—advocating for the full recognition of study years for pension purposes, with the associated contributions covered entirely by a civilized State. Pacifico stated: “For these reasons, the State should reward and support university education, rather than recognizing it only for certain workers while blatantly denying it to those in the education and research sectors—upon whom rests the task of educating the citizens of tomorrow.” This request is based on the arguments put forward in the Anief petition for the recognition of university study years for pension purposes at a reduced cost.