31 May, Minsk /Elena Prus - BELTA/. Labour pensions in 2012 will be recalculated again from 1 August and from 1 November. This was announced by the Minister of Labour and Social Protection of Belarus, Marianna Shchetkina, during an online reception held with the support of BELTA. "According to Decree No. 35 "On Pension Increases", in 2012 labour pensions will be recalculated from 1 August and from 1 November, based on the average wage of employees in the republic for the second and third quarters respectively," said the minister. Previous recalculations this year were from 1 February and from 1 May. Answering a question about deferred pensions, Marianna Shchetkina explained that currently, when applying for an old-age pension later than reaching the generally established retirement age (or upon refusal to receive an already assigned old-age pension), the pension is increased by 1% of the earnings for every two months of work without receiving a pension. In this case, the pension is not limited by the maximum amount (75% of earnings). Decree No. 136 "On Measures to Improve Pension Provision for Citizens", which comes into force on 1 October 2012, increases these percentages. Thus, for the first full year of not receiving a pension, it will be increased by 6% of the earnings used for its calculation, for the second year – by 8%, for the third year – by 10%, for the fourth year – by 12%, and for the fifth and each subsequent year – by 14%. If the work without receiving a pension is for less than a full year, the increase for every full two months of such work is 1% of the earnings. The specified pension increase amounts are cumulative. -0-

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