2.11 PENSION AND DISABILITY INSURANCE CASES CONSIDERED RESOLVED AND FOUNDED NO. OF RESOLVED NO. OF FOUNDED PERCENTAGE OF FOUNDED AMONG RESOLVED 2014 2015 Index 15/14 11. Pension and disability insurance 147 163 110.9 156 14 9.0 11.1 Pension insurance 101 109 107.9 103 8 7.8 11.2 Disability insurance 46 54 117.4 53 6 11.3 FIELD OF WORK 2.11.1 General observations Certain complainants also pointed to the unconstitutionality of provisions of the ZPIZ-2, which enable people to undertake certain activities also after retiring, but limit the finally established right to retirement in the relevant period. When they receive a decision reducing their pension, the affected complainants can pursue legal remedies and exercise their legal interest with a constitutional complaint or a request for a review of constitutionality of disputable legal provisions. Therefore, the Ombudsman chose not to request a constitutional review, although we assess that an encroachment on the right of insured persons arising from compulsory pension insurance is not suitable, since any possible anomalies in the activities of pensioners could be prevented or eliminated with suitable tax arrangements which have precisely the same effect on public resources. Another aspect of the issue, i.e. unequal treatment of disabled people, is discussed in the chapter on discrimination; this section includes only issues that refer to disability insurance. 2.11.2 Pension insurance Most of the complaints in this field referred to the conditions for enforcing the right to a pension, which the ZPIZ-2 severely limits. People were formerly able to purchase the insurance period to enable early retirement, and they are now outraged by the provisions of the Act, which enables such purchase only in the case of old-age retirement. They assess that the Act, which entered into force on 1 January 2013, encroaches upon their anticipated rights, and some also claim that the Act applies retroactively. Some people demanded the 122 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN OF THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA FOR 2015 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OMBUDSMAN OF THE REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA FOR 2015 123 2.11 PENSION AND DISABILITY INSURANCE 2.10 EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS The number of complaints involving pension and disability insurance increased in 2015 compared to 2014, while the share of justified complaints declined from 17.3 to nine percentage points. Many complaints referred to the constitutional review of certain provisions of the Pension and Disability Insurance Act (ZPIZ-2), which began in summer 2015. Individuals whose possible retirements were ‘postponed’ by statutory provisions requested information from the Ombudsman about when the Constitutional Court would make its decision, and they expected the Ombudsman to accelerate the decision-making process. Such expectations are unfounded since the Ombudsman cannot affect the decision making of the Constitutional Court, which is not legally bound to reach decisions within a time limit.

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