Die Linke has criticized the old-age benefits for Bundestag members as disproportionately high. It bases its claims on calculations by the Bundestag's Scientific Service.
Sarah Vollath, the faction's pension expert, told the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland that an employee would have to work nearly 28 years full-time to acquire the same claims as a member of parliament after one legislative term. With a diet increase, it would be 29 years from July. Vollath called this absurd and demanded that MPs be included in the statutory pension insurance. All factions in the Bundestag advocate waiving the diet increase this year. The monthly diets of the 630 MPs were actually due to rise by 497 euros to around 12,330 euros on July 1. The adjustment results from an automatic mechanism in the Members of Parliament Act.
