He is a cornerstone of the welfare state, yet the burden grows each year. The rise in beneficiaries driven by an aging population, along with earlier inflation-adjustment raises, means monthly Social Security payments to retirees have surged. The state has surpassed 300 million euros in payments per month since January, an amount that remains uncertain in totality.
In the most recent month, June saw payments of 310.8 million euros, with an additional 303 million euros for extraordinary summer disbursements. This figure marks a 6.7% increase over last year’s Social Security outlays, underscoring the significant effort needed to sustain public coffers.
Much of the growth relates to higher bank-related earnings that stood about 5.6% above the previous year, largely due to the adjustment of benefits in line with the consumer price index. The new accounting framework obliges the government to add roughly 1.6% more to pensioners’ income to account for inflation. Last year ended with an average inflation rate of 2.5%, compared to the 0.9% anticipated by the administration at the start of the year, with the adjustment raised by 2.5% for the new year. Some of the increase also reflects larger contributions from newer retirees.
Overall, last month’s average pension reached 944 euros, up from 894 euros a year earlier. This substantial rise does reduce the gap, but it does not fully close the difference between the most heavily supported pension recipients and the national average, which has already climbed to 1,090 euros, about 146 euros higher than the regional average. The province ranks eleventh in pension levels, with its situation showing no improvement relative to the regional mean of 1,004 euros, which is 60 euros higher than Alicante.
Pension expenditures rose 4.6% in July to reach a record 10,846 million
Benefits remain the most numerous and among the most generous categories. Pension benefits were received by an average of 212,053 people in Alicante, at 1,070 euros each. The state supported 80,626 widows with an average payment of 678 euros. This amount remains well below the monthly minimum wage, which has reached 1,000 euros for this year.
The relatively modest average payment is one reason why Alicante retirees earn about 31% less than other workers, a gap exacerbated by lower stock-price earnings that tend to accumulate over time.
Disability pensions add an average of 23,310 euros annually, or about 935 euros per month; orphan pensions average 12,448 euros annually, with roughly 386.8 euros per month; and benefits to relatives add another 1,220 euros annually, about 616 euros on average per month.
imbalance
The rise in payments has created a notable imbalance in Social Security accounts across the province of Alicante, even as contributions increase and job creation continues. Through May, the latest balance sheet shows Social Security disbursed 1.707 billion euros for all benefits managed in the province, including maternity benefits, while revenue barely reached 944 million. Excluding direct transfers from the government, the national pattern remains similar, with expenses around 62.330 billion and income near 39.615.
Despite this imbalance, unions maintain that the public pension system is sustainable and point to two avenues to close the gap. First, as stated by the Employment Secretary of CC OO in l’Alacantí i les Marines, José Maria Ruiz Olmos, improving employment quality and promoting sectors that generate higher-skilled jobs will raise contributions. He notes this strategy could help narrow Alicante’s gap with the rest of the country. Additionally, he highlights that some nations fund part of pensions directly from general government budgets as a potential model.
Two in three freelancers in Alicante will pay less under new offers
In a similar vein, the general secretary of l’Alacanti and the UGT in the Navy, Yassel Sanchez, has underscored the importance of stability. He has emphasized that pensions have sustained many families through hardships, acting as a tool to combat inequality and poverty according to union leadership.
Freelancers earn almost 300 euros less
On average, retired self-employed individuals in Alicante receive about 300 euros less than their salaried counterparts. Among the 63,551 retirees in the Special Regime, these professionals averaged 724 euros monthly, compared with the broader program’s 1,020 euros. The gap largely stems from the fact that many self-employed workers contribute at the minimum threshold for most of their careers, regardless of earnings, resulting in smaller pensions. To address this, the government approved a new contribution system this week, shifting monthly charges toward actual income. The plan will establish up to 15 different brackets, likely reducing payments for those with the lowest income and increasing them for higher earners. Projections from union calculations indicate that up to 65% of self-employed individuals may pay less, about 7% stay the same, and roughly 28% could see higher quotas.