The rally was attended by around 400 pensioners who demanded a redistribution of EUR 3 billion from the SoDra pension reserve to help those on the lowest pensions.
Lithuania pays the lowest pension in the European Union, the organisers said, with 180,000 people receiving a pension of just EUR 345.
Demonstrators also criticised second pillar pension funds for failing to guarantee a higher pension. Their benefits depreciate over time as they are not kept in balance with changes in wages and prices, they say.
The president’s adviser Vaidas Augustinavičius, who attended the rally, said that Gitanas Nausėda had sought and would continue to seek a faster increase in pensions. The president also wants to use the SoDra reserve to raise pensions, he added.
The rally was followed by a march down Gediminas Avenue towards the Government building, where the protesters met with Minister of Social Security and Labour Monika Navickienė. They handed over a resolution signed by the organisers, the Lithuanian Confederation of Trade Unions, the trade union Solidarumas, the Lithuanian Consumers Association and the Lithuanian Academy of Active Longevity.
The Ministry of Social Security and Labour announced on Monday that the average old-age pension in 2024 will increase by almost 11%, or EUR 58, to EUR 596 this year.