Why did not the increase in salaries and pensions affect reserve officers?

Baku/04.02.22/Turan: By presidential decree, on January 1 of this year, the monthly salaries of military personnel were increased by an average of 20%. However, the increase in salaries and pensions did not apply to retired and reserve officers. This approach also caused discontent among the reserve officers.

Why did  not the increase in salaries and pensions affect reserve officers? What is the reason? Who is trying to cause indignation of the reserve officers?

Military expert Uzeyir Jafarov answers these and other questions in the Difficult Question program.

In his opinion, it is premature to say that the increase in salaries and pensions does not apply to retired and reserve officers. However, it may seem that  they do not want it to be extended to reserve officers and retired officers.

“We will find out exactly about this on February 15th. But it is already obvious that the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population (MLSPP) and the Ministry of Finance insist that the increase in salaries and pensions does not apply to retired and reserve officers,” the military man says.

According to him, the law "On pensions for military personnel" took into account the specifics of heavy military service and pensioners in this category provided for two types of paid benefits (support costs - Article 57, and payment for living expenses - Article 58). In 2006, these articles were abolished, some provisions were transferred to the Law on Labor Pensions, and in 2020, the Milli Majlis approved new amendments to the Law of Azerbaijan on Labor Pensions, Jafarov said, noting that the reformed draft provides for abandoning these benefits, and now the calculation and indexation of pensions of the former military should take place in the same way as other categories of the population.

The expert also noted that the MLSPP is talking about new amendments to the law and, in particular, the abolition of Article 19, which provides for supplements to the insurance part of labor pensions. These additional payments to pensions are proposed to be canceled and combined with the pensions of the President of Azerbaijan.

According to Jafarov, military pensioners are not enthusiastic about such a reform, since service in law enforcement agencies is associated with hardships and deprivation of life in the field, irregular working hours, loss of health, danger to life, and living in field conditions.

“Nevertheless, we accept these conditions. However, the law, which came into force in 2020, cannot but apply to those reserve and retired officers who retired after 2020. The increase in salaries and pensions should also affect them,” says Jafarov.—0—