The Minister of Labor, Gloria Inés Ramírez, opened the door for the so-called allowance 14 to be paid again in Colombia. She did it during the speech she gave on Monday, May 6, during the Government with the Neighborhoodswhich took place in Ciudad Bolívar, in Bogotá, with the presence of President Gustavo Petro and other ministers.
In this, the official referred to both the labor and pension reform projects, initiatives that are being processed in the Congress of the Republic and that, at least the pension reform, is already two debates away in the House of Representatives from being approved.
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While finishing talking about the latter, the official assured that for said payment to be applied again it is necessary to modify the Political Constitution.
“And allowance 14, which we all would like, do you know who took it away? Who? Ah, well, to get it back we have to reform the Constitution.”Ramírez asserted. Likewise, he pointed out that “we brought out the new system and then we are going to reform the national Constitution. That is the challenge, this is the challenge.”
Pensioners due to retirement, disability, old age and survivors, from the public, official, semi-official sector, in all its orders, in the private sector and from the Social Security Institute, as well as retirees and pensioners from the Military Forces and the National Police —whose pensions had been caused and recognized before January 1, 1988—, were entitled to the recognition and payment of 30 days of the pension that corresponded to each of them by the respective regime, which was paid with the month’s allowance. June of each year, starting in 1994.
National old-age pensioners, beneficiaries of the readjustments ordered in Decree 2108 of 1992, received recognition and payment of thirty days of additional allowance only as of June 1996.
However, said additional allowance – regulated by the transcribed norm and commonly called “allowance fourteen” – was delimited by Legislative Act 01 of 2005. This act added article 48 of the Political Constitution of Colombia, determining in its article 1, subsection 8, which For people whose right to pension arose from the validity of the aforementioned act – this was July 29, 2005 – they could not receive more than 13 pension allowances per year. It is understood, as indicated by said rule, that the accrual of the right occurs when all the requirements to access the pension are met, even when the recognition has not been made, thus distinguishing between the concepts of accrual and perception of the right.
The rule, as reported by the Presidency of the Republic on its website, expressly stated: “People whose right to a pension accrues from the validity of this Legislative Act may not receive more than thirteen (13) pension allowances per year.” . It is understood that the pension is granted when all the requirements to access it are met, even if the recognition has not been made.
In addition, as transitional paragraph 6, it was established that “those people who receive a pension equal to or less than three current legal monthly minimum wages are excepted from what is established by section 8 of this article, if it is accrued before 31 July 2011, who will receive fourteen (14) pension allowances per year.”
In accordance with the transcribed regulations, three moments must be distinguished, as follows:
- All pension recognitions caused prior to July 29, 2005 are entitled to the payment of allowance 14 without exception and regardless of the amount of the pension, and without exceeding 15 current legal monthly minimum wages (smlmv).
- For pensions caused between July 29, 2005 and July 31, 2011, it must be observed for the payment of the fourteenth allowance that the initial amount of the pension is equal to or less than three smlmv, at the time of compliance with the requirements to access the pension. Those that do not exceed this amount will be entitled to allowance 13; Those who do exceed it will not have the right.
- For all pensions accrued after July 31, 2011, there is no place for payment of the fourteenth allowance in any case.
“Now, the Foncep (Economic Benefits, Severance and Pension Fund) for the payment of the so-called allowance 14 that is paid with the allowance for the month of June of each year, must take into account the rules described in the previous section, since it must strictly comply with the current regulations, explained in this communication,” says the Presidency.
The currently established rules could only be changed in the Congress of the Republic through a legislative act, by which article 48 of the Political Constitution of Colombia is modified again, over which Foncep has no influence whatsoever.
