Lula Allies Ready to Dilute Brazilian Pension Bill...

Lula Allies Ready to Dilute Brazilian Pension Bill, Estado Says

July 30 (Bloomberg) — Brazil’s ruling coalition may bow to
pressure from judges to keep some of their pension benefits
intact as the government struggles to quell their threats to
strike, O Estado de S. Paulo reported on its Web site.

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s allies in congress may
amend his bill to satisfy judges’ demands for higher pensions,
the daily newspaper said, citing unnamed legislators familiar
with the situation. Among the changes, judges may be able to
retire with a pension equivalent to 85 percent of their last
salary, compared to a proposal of 75 percent, the paper said.

State and federal judges may cancel a strike planned for Aug.
5-12 as the coalition moves to ease the cuts in pensions, the
paper reported. Opposition to Lula supports the amendments,
the paper said. Lula’s Workers’ Party will vote in favor of
the draft calling for reduced pensions, Estado said.

The government failed to capitalize on growing popular support
for cutting public servants’ pensions, say analysts such as
Carlos Lopes of political risk company Santafe Ideais in
Brasilia. Judges’ retirement benefits are among the most
generous in Brazil, with pensions averaging 10,000 reais
($3,450) per month, or about 10 times the average for private
workers.