Survey shows clear majority in favor of initiative for a 13th AHV pension
Published: Wednesday, Jan 17th 2024, 06:20
Back to Live Feed
If the initiative for a 13th AHV pension had been put to the vote last week, 71% would have accepted the popular initiative. This is the result of the first survey commissioned by Tamedia and "20 Minuten" on the votes on March 3.
The authors of the study wrote on Wednesday that the high level of support for the initiative for a 13th AHV pension is remarkable given the advanced stage of opinion formation. This can be seen in the low proportion of "rather yes" responses and the very low proportion of undecided respondents.
However, it should be noted that approval ratings for popular initiatives usually fall over the course of voting campaigns, according to the authors. The "yes" rate is comparable to the initiative to ban advertising for tobacco products and e-cigarettes to young people and children on February 13, 2022, which was ultimately approved by 57% of the electorate.
Agreement in almost all parties
The initiative for a 13th AHV pension is supported by almost all parties, according to the study. Only the FDP base is against the proposal - but only just, with 54% voting against. With the exception of the GLP, the other major parties were very supportive.
The lower the level of education of those surveyed, the greater the support for the proposal, the authors wrote. Among people with a compulsory school-leaving certificate, the "yes" rate was 85%, while only 55% of university or university of applied sciences graduates were in favor.
Approval increases with age
According to the survey, approval of the proposal also increases with age. In the youngest age group (18-34-year-olds), slightly more than half of respondents want to vote yes, while in the oldest age group (65 and over) the figure is 84%.
The strongest argument put forward by supporters is that the 13th AHV pension can offset inflation, rising rents and higher health insurance premiums for pensioners. Opponents see additional costs of over four billion francs per year as a problem.
Clear No for the pension initiative
According to the survey, the Young Liberals' pension initiative would have been rejected with 61% of votes against. Only the FDP base supported the cause of their young party, albeit not clearly with 56 percent in favor, according to the survey. Voters from the SP, Greens, SVP and Center Party were clearly against the initiative in the survey, while the GLP base was divided.
Women are significantly more skeptical (29% yes) than men (37% yes), the study continued. According to the authors of the study, the French-speaking part of Switzerland also had a higher "no" rate (70 percent) than the German-speaking part (59 percent). The pension initiative was rejected in all age groups, with the exception of the over-65s, who would no longer be affected by an increase in the retirement age.
The argument that increasing life expectancy must also result in more years of work prevails among those in favor. This is countered by the argument that older employees are no longer in demand on the labor market.
For the survey, the Leewas research institute interviewed 23,614 people throughout Switzerland online on January 10 and 11. The sampling error is +/-1.1 percentage points.
©Keystone/SDA
English 
German 
French 
Spanish 
Arabic