Overview

• Marcel Fratzscher told SPIEGEL that all retirees should complete a compulsory social year, with health exemptions, contributing in care, community services or in technical, non‑frontline defense roles drawing on prior Bundeswehr training.
• He argued the baby‑boomer cohort had too few children, noting the shift from six contributors per retiree in the 1960s to an expected two, and called for a new generation contract with greater solidarity from older cohorts.
• Social groups and unions rejected the plan as disrespectful or divisive, with SoVD and DGB opposing a duty for pensioners and VdK labeling it a “Schnapsidee,” while figures from AfD, BSW, CDU/CSU and FDP also criticized the idea.
• The call comes after DIW proposed a “Boomer‑Soli” surcharge on higher old‑age incomes targeting roughly the top fifth of retirees to bolster pension finances and support lower‑income pensioners.
• Polling by Allensbach shows many expect higher retirement ages and lower benefits yet few accept such cuts, and the government plans a pension commission in early 2026 to weigh options rather than act immediately.