Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102) - Norway (Ratification: 1954)

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

In order to provide a comprehensive view of the issues relating to the application of ratified Conventions on social security, the Committee considers it appropriate to examine Conventions Nos 102 (minimum standards), 128 (invalidity, old-age and survivors’ benefits), 130 (medical care and sickness benefits), and 168 (employment promotion and unemployment benefits) together.

Consolidated reporting on social security Conventions. Further to its previous request to complete the consolidated report on the application of the ratified social security Conventions, the Committee welcomes the Government’s initiative to review and update the information contained in the consolidated report. In doing so, the Government has replied to a range of questions previously raised by the Committee on the application of Conventions Nos 102, 128, 130, and 168. The Committee takes due note, in particular, of the statistical data provided on the persons protected, coverage and replacement rates of social security benefits, and of the information concerning the minimum duration of benefits, qualifying periods, and other conditions of entitlement.

Article 15(2) of Convention No. 128. Pensionable age. Further to its previous request on whether the increase in the pensionable age above 65 years met the conditions set out in Article 15(2) of the Convention, namely giving due regard to demographic, economic and social criteria which justify such an increase, the Committee notes the indication by the Government that from 1964 to 2019, life expectancy in Norway increased from 77 to 84.5 years for women and from 71 to 81 years for men. The Government further indicates that the number of pensioners increased to nearly one million persons by 2018. The Committee also observes from the OECD’s publication “The State of Health in the EU’s Country Health Profiles. Norway, 2019” that Norwegians at age 65 can expect to lead an additional 16 years of healthy life without disability. The Committee further observes from the website “Statistics Norway” that the percentage of employed persons of between 55 and 74 ages increased from 41.4 per cent in 1988 to 51.3 per cent in 2022. The Committee takes due note of this information.

Article 15(3) of Convention No. 128. Early retirement and entitlement to old-age pension for workers in arduous and unhealthy occupations. The Committee notes the indication by the Government that while the general pensionable age is 67 years, old-age pension can be drawn between 62 and 75 years of age (flexible retirement age). Entitlement to a pension between 62 and 67 years of age is possible if the level of the pension to which the person concerned would obtain at 67 is at least equal to the minimum pension level.

The Committee observes from the Government’s report that the total amount of old-age pension provided to a standard beneficiary, as defined in the Convention, at the age of 62 after a 20 year-qualifying period (NOK87,854) is higher than the minimum pension level at low rate based on an insurance period of 20 years (NOK79,311). The Government points out that a person under this scenario will therefore be entitled to an old-age pension at 62. The Government further indicates that the replacement rate of the old-age pension in this case would amount to 18.7 per cent of the standard beneficiary’s wage.

The Committee recalls that according to Article 15(3) of the Convention, if the pensionable age is 65 years or higher, the age shall be lowered, under prescribed conditions, in respect of persons who have been engaged in occupations that are deemed by national legislation, for the purpose of old-age benefit, to be arduous or unhealthy. The Committee further recalls that the purpose of this provision is intended to ensure additional protection, through a more favourable system, to persons employed on arduous or unhealthy work, by allowing them to draw an anticipated old-age pension, of which the rate and qualifying period must conform to Articles 17 (old-age pension’s rate) and 18 (minimum qualifying period) of the Convention. For this purpose, the calculation of the old-age pension drawn at 62 years must be based on a 30-year qualifying period, which is the standard qualifying period for the entitlement to an old-age pension at the minimum level required by the Convention, as stipulated in its Articles 17 and 26.

The Committee further observes that, in its calculations, the Government compares the total amount of old-age pension with the minimum pension level provided at low rate to a pensioner with a spouse who is in receipt of an old-age pension (NOK158,621 in 2020). According to the Government, however, a spouse who is inactive will not qualify for an old-age pension before attaining the age of 67. The Committee therefore considers that the total amount of an old-age pension should be compared with the minimum pension level provided at high rate when a pensioner’s spouse does not receive an old-age pension (NOK193,188) or at special rate for single pensioners (NOK208,690).

The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the possibility of workers in arduous and unhealthy occupations to draw a pension at an age lower than 65, according to the following scenarios:

• -for a single person with the standard beneficiary’s wage who is 62 years old and with a 30-year qualifying period;
• -for a person with the standard beneficiary’s wage who is 62 years old, with a 30-year qualifying period and a dependent spouse of the same age.

The Committee further requests the Government to indicate the replacement rates of old-age pensions under both scenarios. It also requests the Government to provide information on any other possibilities for early retirement, apart from the provisions on the flexible retirement age, under which workers in arduous and unhealthy occupations may retire earlier than 65 years, in line with Article 15(3) of the Convention.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Article 36(3) of the Convention, in conjunction with Article 72. Employment injury benefits for incapacity of less than 30 per cent. Following its previous comments, the Committee notes from the Government’s report that persons with incapacity for work above 30 per cent due to employment injury are entitled to periodic cash benefits under the National Insurance Scheme. In addition, lump-sum payments for loss of future income and for non-economic losses (reduced quality of life) are provided to persons with incapacity for work, including those with incapacity below 30 per cent, under the mandatory Occupational Injury Insurance Scheme ("yrkesskadeforsikringsloven"), which is outside the framework of the National Insurance Scheme.

The Committee recalls that Article 36(1) and (2) of the Convention pursues the primary aim to ensure a permanent compensation, i.e. a periodical benefit in case of permanent total or partial loss of earning capacity caused by an employment injury. As an exception, Article 36(3)(a) of the Convention allows for the conversion of a periodical benefit into a lump-sum payment where the degree of incapacity is slight. The Committee has previously admitted incapacity below 30 per cent as a slight degree and allowed the conversion of periodical benefits into lump-sum payments which should bear an “equitable relationship” to the periodical payment otherwise due. In this respect, the Committee observes that the National Insurance Scheme does not provide any cash benefits in case of incapacity below 30 per cent. The Committee further observes that the compensation provided by the Occupational Injury Insurance Scheme constitutes a different additional payment, which is not made in lieu of a periodical payment otherwise due by the National Insurance Scheme, as in fact it bears no relationship to such a payment.

The Committee also recalls that according to Article 72(1) of the Convention, where the administration is not entrusted to an institution regulated by the public authorities or to a Government department responsible to a legislature, representatives of the persons protected shall participate in the management, or be associated therewith in a consultative capacity, under prescribed conditions. In this respect, the Committee observes from the information provided by the Government that the Occupational Injury Insurance Scheme is administered by private insurance companies. The Committee however observes that the Occupational Injury Insurance Act of 1989 does not indicate whether and how representatives of the persons protected may participate in the management of the Occupational Injury Insurance Scheme.

The Committee further takes note of the statement by the Government that improving the Norwegian Occupational Injury Scheme is part of its political platform. The Government considers the question of whether the National Insurance Scheme should provide disability benefit in the event of occupational injuries when the degree of incapacity is lower than 30 per cent to be a natural part of this work, and this would include considering the question of whether a disability benefit granted at low degrees of incapacity should be commuted into a lump-sum.

In view of the above, the Committee firmly hopes that, in the course of the intended reform, the Government will take the necessary measures to give full effect to Article 36 of the Convention by reducing the minimum threshold for the payment of periodic cash benefits under the National Insurance Scheme below 30 per cent of incapacity, subject to the possibility of commuting such benefits into a lump sum.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Coverage and conditions of entitlement. According to the publication of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs on The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015, previously earned income of a prescribed minimum amount is a condition for entitlement to certain benefits: an insured person must have an annual income of at least 0.5 basic amount (B.a. – 44,185 Norwegian krone (NOK)) in order to be entitled to daily cash benefits in the case of sickness; 1.5 B.a. (NOK132,555) in the preceding calendar year or at least 3 B.a. (NOK265,110) during the three preceding calendar years for entitlement to unemployment benefit. Please indicate whether the entitlement to benefits in case of employment injury is also subjected to having a certain previous minimum income from work. In terms of coverage, the report on Convention No. 130 states that persons protected by the sickness benefit scheme comprise all persons with an annual income of at least 0.5 B.a. (2,604,000 in 2014), while the report on Convention No. 128 counts as persons protected by the old-age and invalidity schemes persons with “registered gross earned income (‘pensionable income’) equal to or exceeding the B.a.” (2,618,467 in 2014), who constituted 85.8 per cent of the total number of employed persons in Norway (3,124,312 in 2015). Employed persons, according to this report, include “persons who have performed paid work of at least one hour’s duration”. The Committee understands from these figures that many thousands of employees whose earnings are below the minimum annual insurable earnings, are excluded from coverage by the Norwegian social insurance scheme. It notes however that the report on Convention No. 102 states that the number of employees insured under Part III (Sickness benefit), Part IV (Unemployment benefit) and Part VI (Employment injury benefit) is 100 per cent of the number of employees in Norway (2,765,000 in 2015). In view of the confusing nature of this data, the Committee would like the Government to clarify the situation as regards the legal and statistical definition of employees, income related conditions of social insurance coverage of employees, the number of insured employees and the total number of employees in Norway. It recalls in this respect that, under Conventions Nos 128 and 130, Norway has undertaken to extend coverage to all employees, including apprentices, irrespective of their previous earned income, and that the ILO social security Conventions do not permit to subject the entitlement to benefits to a condition of earning not less than a prescribed minimum annual amount of income. Convention No. 102, however, permits extending insurance coverage only to “prescribed classes of employees”, which may be determined by taking into account their contributory capacity, and to make the entitlement to benefits subject to completing a qualifying period of contribution.

Medical care. Part II of Convention No. 102, Article 11; Article 15 of Convention No. 130. Length of the qualifying period. The report on Convention No. 130 states that all persons residing in Norway are protected. Please indicate the length of the qualifying period of residence or stay in the country necessary to obtain protection and to preclude abuse.

Sickness benefit. Article 26(1) of Convention No. 130. Minimum duration of benefit. The report on Convention No. 130 states that sickness benefit is paid for 260 working days (52 weeks) per year. Please indicate whether the entitlement to 260 benefit days is renewed for each new case of sickness, in accordance with this provision of the Convention.

Unemployment benefit. Part IV of Convention No. 102, Articles 23 and 24(3) and (4); Articles 17 and 18 of Convention No. 168. Please indicate the length of the qualifying period and the waiting period and the relevant legal provisions. Please indicate whether these periods are adapted to the conditions of employment of seasonal workers.

Article 20 (suitable employment) in conjunction with Article 69 (suspension of benefit) of Convention No. 102; Article 21 of Convention No. 168. With respect to the previous request of the Committee under Convention No. 168 regarding decisions terminating payment of unemployment benefit, the Government indicates that, in 2015, 44 jobseekers had their benefits stopped during the first three months of unemployment because of refusal to take work offered or work in another part of the country, or part-time work. The Committee notes, from the detailed explanations given by the Government, that only one jobseeker had been sanctioned during the first three months of 2015 for refusing to accept jobs which did not correspond to his qualifications, and that the Government considers therefore that it is not necessary to amend the corresponding guidelines of the Directorate of Labour and Welfare.

Old-age benefit. Article 15(2) and (3) of Convention No. 128. Pension age. According to the report on Convention No. 128, old-age pension can be drawn between 62 and 75 years of age. There is a minimum old-age pension (garantipensjon) which is paid at a low, ordinary, high or special rate; the ordinary or high rates are paid respectively to a recipient who is married/cohabitates or lives alone. The guaranteed pension is determined on the basis of the insurance period (periods of residence) and is reduced proportionately in case of a shorter insurance period than 40 years. The Committee notes that the full ordinary rate of the guaranteed old-age pension after 40 years of insurance was NOK162,566 in May 2015, which is higher than the amount of the old-age pension granted to an insured employee after 30 years of earning pension points and 30 years of residence (NOK142,141), as calculated in the report. The Committee notes in this respect, from The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015, that in order to draw an old-age pension before attaining the age of 67, the pension must, when the person in question attains the age of 67, be at least equal to the minimum pension level for persons with an insurance period of 40 years. The Committee understands therefore, from the figures given above, that this condition would not be fulfilled by the pension acquired by the persons protected at the age of 67 under the standard scenario established by the Convention: with 30 years of contributions and earnings not exceeding the reference wage of the skilled manual male employee. Consequently, the effective age of retirement for all persons protected whose earnings do not exceed those of the skilled worker, would not be 65 but 67 years. The Committee points out in this respect that Article 26(2) of the European Code of Social Security (ECSS), as amended by the Protocol, which is also ratified by Norway, expressly prohibits increasing the pension age beyond 65 years where employees only are protected under the Code, as in Norway, while Article 15(2) of Convention No. 128 obliges the competent authority fixing the higher pension age to demonstrate statistically the need for such measure, taking into account the demographic, economic and social criteria. Moreover, as a counterbalance to the higher pension age, Article 15(3) of Convention No. 128 requires this age to be lowered in respect of persons who have been engaged in occupations that are deemed by national legislation, for the purpose of old-age benefit, to be arduous or unhealthy. Recalling that Norway is bound by all of the above legal limitations and prohibitions regarding the increase of the pension age above 65 years, the Committee asks the Government to clarify the situation with the effective age of retirement under the conditions of entitlement prescribed by Convention No. 128 on the basis of detailed calculation of the old-age pension replacement rate under the standard scenario, taking into account the Committee’s observations below.

Article 17 of Convention No. 128. Calculation of the replacement rate of the old-age benefit. The Committee notes that the old-age benefit of the standard beneficiary (man with wife of pensionable age) is composed of the basic pension and supplementary pension for the husband and the basic pension and the special supplement for his wife. The husband is born in 1951, starts drawing his pension at 65 and his annuity divisor is 1.156; his wife is born in 1949, starts drawing her pension at 67 and her annuity divisor is 1.030. The Committee observes that the selection of the standard beneficiary where the wife’s natural and pensionable age is two years older than her husband, is rather unexpected. Recalling that the old-age pension in Norway can be drawn already at the age of 62, the Committee asks the Government to recalculate, in accordance with Article 26 of the Convention, the replacement rate of the old-age benefit for a married couple with both spouses retiring under the standard scenario at reaching the lowest legal pension age of 62 years. The Committee draws the Government’s attention that this calculation can also be done under Article 27 of the Convention by establishing the replacement rate of combined guaranteed minimum pensions granted to a married couple after 20 years of residence (insurance) in Norway.

Article 18(1) of Convention No. 128. Length of the qualifying period of residence. With respect to the calculation of the replacement rate of the old-age benefit for the standard beneficiary done in the report on Convention No. 128, the Committee observes that it is based on 30 years of earning pension points for the husband and “on 30 years of residence for both spouses”. It points out that, according to Article 18(1)(a) of Convention No. 128, these calculations may include only those elements of the old-age benefit which satisfy the qualifying conditions prescribed by these instruments and are thus acquired after only 20 years of residence for both spouses. This is particularly important as regards the old-age pension of the dependent wife who acquires her pension on the basis of residence alone.

Article 18(2). Calculation of the reduced old-age benefit. The Committee notes that the calculation of the reduced old-age benefit is based on a residence period of 15 years for both spouses. It points out that Article 18(2)(a) of Convention No. 128 requires payment of a reduced benefit only where the old-age benefit is conditional upon a minimum period of contribution or employment and does not concern pension systems based on residence. A reduced pension under these provisions shall be secured after 15 years of contribution or employment without any qualifying period of residence. This means that pension elements, supplements and allowances, the entitlement to which is subjected to a qualifying period of residence, particularly with respect to the dependent wife, shall be excluded from calculating the amount of the reduced pension of the standard beneficiary. The Government is asked to explain whether provisions concerning reduced benefit are applicable to the pension system in Norway and, if they are, recalculate its replacement rate accordingly.

Employment injury benefit. Part VI of Convention No. 102/ECSS. (a) Article 36(2) and (3) of Convention No. 102. Degree of incapacity. According to the report on Convention No. 128, an insured person whose income capacity is permanently reduced by at least 50 per cent due to illness, injury or defect, is entitled to a disability benefit. If the disability is due to an approved occupational illness or injury, it is sufficient that the income capacity is permanently reduced by at least 30 per cent. Please indicate what employment injury benefits compensate loss of income capacity up to 30 per cent.

(b) The Committee notes from The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015, that employees are also covered by an occupational injury compensation act outside the framework of the National Insurance legislation. In view of the persistent lack of information in the reports since 2006 on the application of many provisions of Part VI (Employment injury benefit) of Convention No. 102 and of the ECSS, the Committee asks the Government to explain to what extent this act may be relevant to the application of this Part of the Convention.

Family benefit. Part VII of Convention No. 102/ECSS, Articles 43 (qualifying period) and 44 (total value of benefits granted). Please provide detailed information and calculations showing that Norway fulfils the obligations under these provisions of the Code.

Invalidity benefit, Article 10 of Convention No. 128. Calculation of the level of benefit. (a) Composition of the disability benefit. With respect to the composition of the disability benefit taken for the purpose of the Convention, the report mentions the basic benefit granted if the disability involves significant extra expenses; the attendance benefit granted if the disabled person needs special attention; the basic amount; the special supplement which is calculated as a percentage of the basic amount; the basic pension which is linked to the time of residence in Norway (insurance period); and the supplementary pension linked to the number of years with income exceeding the B.a. earning pension points. A married receiver of the disability benefit may also be entitled to the special supplement which may be calculated at 74 or 100 per cent of the B.a., or 200 per cent if the pensioner supports a spouse over 60 years of age. Receiving both the special supplement and the supplementary pension is subjected to the special rules prescribing their combined rates and limits. As each element of the disability benefit is subjected to different conditions of entitlement, the Committee asks the Government to specify which of them shall comprise the invalidity benefit for the purpose of the Convention and shall be taken into account in calculating its replacement rate under the standard scenario. Please explain the rules of combining the selected elements and calculating their resulting rates applicable to the standard beneficiary, bearing in mind the requirements of Article 26(3) of the Convention.

(b) Qualifying period and future period of insurance. The Committee notes that the method of calculation of the disability benefit takes into account, in addition to the actual insurance period completed before the contingency, the future period of insurance until the beneficiary reaches the age limit of 67 years (62 years in the examples given in the report). Consequently, the report gives examples of calculations based on the total insurance period of 32 or 40 years, including the actual insurance period of 15 years. The Committee observes that these examples do not follow the method of calculation prescribed by the Convention, inasmuch as the replacement rate of the invalidity benefit for the standard beneficiary is calculated on the basis of the insurance period being longer than the maximum qualifying period stipulated in Article 11 of the Convention for calculating the standard benefit under its paragraph 1 and the reduced benefit under paragraph 2. While including the future period of insurance significantly increases the replacement rate of the disability benefit for the beneficiaries who became invalids early in their life, this calculation formula might not guarantee the minimum level of the benefit prescribed by the Convention to the beneficiaries who have sustained the invalidity at more advanced age. The Committee therefore asks the Government to provide additional examples of the calculation of the replacement rate of the disability benefit for the standard beneficiary with 15 years of actual insurance period and very short or no expected future insurance period, as may be in the case of the beneficiary who arrived in Norway at the age of 45–50 and became disabled at 60–65.

(c) Minimum disability benefit. According to The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015 (p. 12), a beneficiary who has been a resident for less than 20 years, will be entitled to a disability benefit solely based upon previous income, the rate of which would fall much below the level of 50 per cent of the skilled workers’ wage guaranteed by Convention No. 128. The Committee notes however that, according to the report on Convention No. 128, the disability benefit is subjected to the yearly minimum of 2.28 B.a. for persons living with a spouse/cohabitant and 2.48 B.a. for others, which permits the Government to calculate the replacement rate of the disability benefit also under Article 27 of Convention No. 128 by reference to the unskilled workers’ wage. In 2015, the minimum amount paid at the ordinary rate for a married disabled person was NOK205,355 and would be higher than 50 per cent of the unskilled worker’s wage required by the Convention. The Committee asks the Government to specify the conditions under which the minimum disability benefit is granted at the ordinary or high rate and to show that the rate applicable to the standard beneficiary complies with the requirements of Article 27 of Convention No. 128.

(d) Child supplement. The Committee notes that calculations of the level of the disability benefit include a supplement for two children taken at the full rate of 40 per cent of the basic amount (B.a.) for each supported child under the age of 18, while the report indicates that this supplement is income-tested and may be granted up to 40 per cent of the B.a. on certain conditions. The child supplement is reduced if the annual income (pension and wages) exceeds certain limits (as from 1 May 2016, NOK462,880 for two children living with both parents). The Committee also notes that the child supplement is calculated in proportion to the total insurance period of the disabled pensioner including future years of insurance after the onset of the disability. If the Government would like to continue including the child supplement in the calculation of the replacement level of the disability benefit, the Committee would ask it to: (a) state the qualifying conditions under which the supplement is granted and the rules of calculating its amount; (b) specify the conditions and the rate which would apply to the standard beneficiary under Part II (Invalidity benefit) of Convention No. 128; (c) provide examples where the child supplement is calculated for the standard beneficiary who has completed the maximum qualifying period stipulated in Article 11 of the Convention without adding to it any future years of insurance; and (d) confirm that the income limit for the child supplement is set high enough to ensure that the supplement will be paid to all persons protected whose earnings do not exceed those of the skilled manual male employee. The Committee nevertheless would like to remind the Government that, in principle, income- or means-tested benefits or supplements are not taken into account for the purpose of calculating the replacement level of benefits under Article 26 of the Convention. Moreover, it may be useful to recall that, with regard to the disability benefit, Article 56(1)(b) of the ECSS, as amended by the Protocol, expressly stipulates that, even if the protection under Part IX (Invalidity benefit) is provided by way of the means-tested benefits, “a prescribed benefit shall be guaranteed without a means test to the prescribed classes of persons determined in accordance with sub-paragraphs (a) or (b) of Article 55, subject to qualifying conditions not more stringent than those specified in paragraph 1 of Article 57”.

Article 11(1) of Convention No. 128. Qualifying period and condition of insurance. According to The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015, the disability benefit is payable as long as the person remains insured, this requirement being waived if the person has been resident in Norway for at least 20 years. The Committee concludes that persons protected who have completed a qualifying period of only 15 years of contribution or employment or ten years of residence, will lose their disability benefit if their insurance is terminated. Please explain what other reasons, besides reaching the age limit of 67 years, might lead to the termination of insurance and the consequent loss of the disability benefit in such cases.

Article 12 of Convention No. 128. Age limit for the duration of benefit. According to the report on Convention No. 128, since 1 January 2015, new disability benefits are granted to an insured person between 18 and 67 years of age, while old-age pension can be drawn between 62 and 75 years of age. The Committee recalls that, according to Article 12 of the Convention, the disability benefit shall be granted throughout the duration of disability or until an old-age benefit becomes payable; its duration therefore cannot be limited by a prescribed age which in certain cases, as in Norway, might be lower than the pensionable age. With respect to the number of employees over 67 years of age who may thus be excluded from the persons protected under Part II of Convention No. 128, the report shows that the number of persons with insurable income at the age of between 17 and 67 constituted 85.8 per cent of the total number of employed persons between the ages of 17 and 74, which means that a substantial number of persons continued to work after reaching the age of 67 years. Recalling that under Convention No. 128, Norway has undertaken to provide the disability benefit to all employees until it is replaced by the old-age pension, the Committee asks the Government to explain how protection is ensured to disabled pensioners who, after attaining the age of 67, have not yet claimed their old-age pension. Please also explain why in the examples of calculation of the replacement rate of the disability benefit given in the report, the future periods of insurance are calculated up to the age of 62 years instead of 67, while in similar examples concerning the survivors’ benefit these future periods are calculated up to the age of 67 years, when the surviving spouse may be transferred to the old-age pension.

Survivors’ benefit. Part IV of Convention No. 128, Article 23. Calculation of benefit. The Committee asks the Government to recalculate the replacement rate of the survivors’ benefit for a standard beneficiary taking into account the following indications:

(a) Future period of insurance. The Committee notes that the method of calculation of the survivors’ benefit follows that of the invalidity benefit and takes into account, in addition to the actual insurance period completed by the late breadwinner before death, future expected periods of insurance (residency) and earning of pension points until the deceased breadwinner’s 67th birthday. Consequently, the report gives examples of calculations based on the total qualifying period of 37 or 40 years, including the actual insurance period of 15 years, for the calculation of the standard benefit, and 27 and 32 years, including an actual insurance period of five years, for the calculation of the reduced benefit. The Committee observes that these examples do not follow the method of calculation prescribed by the Convention, inasmuch as the replacement rate of the survivors’ benefit (basic pension, supplementary pension, children’s pension) is calculated on the basis of the insurance period being much longer than the maximum qualifying period stipulated in Article 24 of the Convention for calculating the standard benefit under its paragraph 1 and the reduced benefit under paragraph 2. The replacement level of the survivors’ benefit recalculated by the Committee for the standard beneficiary with only 15 years of actual insurance period will fall much below the level of 45 per cent of the skilled workers’ wage required by Convention No. 128. The Committee notes in this respect that apparently, unlike the disability benefit, there is no guaranteed minimum level of the survivors’ benefit in Norway.

(b) Income test. According to The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015 (p. 10), the survivors’ pension is subject to an income test. If the surviving spouse has, or may be expected to get, an annual income exceeding 50 per cent of the B.a., the pension will be equal to the difference between a full pension and 40 per cent of the exceeding income. A surviving spouse under the age of 55 is expected to have an annual earned income of 2 B.a. (NOK176,740). For a survivor without earned income, the pension will be reduced by NOK53,022, unless the person concerned has a reasonable cause for not having any income. Survivors who are not employed at the time of death, are allowed a reasonable transitional period. The Committee recalls in this respect that Norway applies Part X (Survivors’ benefit) of the ECSS to the wives and children of employees who shall be entitled, in accordance with Article 62 of the ECSS, as amended by the Protocol, to a prescribed benefit guaranteed without a means test or income test. However, Article 60(2) of the ECSS and Article 31 of Convention No. 128 permit to reduce the benefit, if contributory, where the earnings of the beneficiary exceed a prescribed amount, and, if non-contributory, where his earnings or other means or the two taken together exceed a prescribed amount. There are no provisions in the Convention or the ECSS which allow the reduction of the benefit in the case where the survivor is expected to have an annual earned income but actually has none. As the design of the survivors’ benefit in Norway appears to be rather peculiar, the Committee asks the Government to explain to what extent the Norwegian survivors’ benefit scheme complies with or makes use of these provisions of the Convention and which impact they have on the calculation of the replacement rate of the survivors’ benefit for the standard beneficiary.

Article 24(1)(a). Length of qualifying period. According to The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015, a surviving spouse under 67, who has not started drawing on old-age pension and who is not entitled to a disability pension, is entitled to pension benefits if she herself is insured with entitlement to pension benefits and the deceased was insured. If the deceased had earned a supplementary pension, the surviving spouse is not required to be insured to be granted a corresponding basic pension. The condition that the survivor shall be insured for the granting of a basic pension is also waived if either the survivor or the deceased has been a resident in Norway for at least 20 years. The Committee points out that the benefit under Part IV of the Convention is not conditioned upon the surviving wives and children being insured in their own right but is derived from the insurance rights of their deceased breadwinner accumulated after 15 years of contribution or employment, or ten years of residence. The Convention admits however that, for a benefit payable to a widow, the alternative condition may consist in the completion of a prescribed qualifying period of residence by such widow herself. If such condition is imposed by the national legislation, the Committee considers that the length of the qualifying period to be completed by the widow cannot be longer than the qualifying period prescribed for the breadwinner. Consequently, in order to comply with the Convention and the ECSS, the condition that the survivor shall be insured for the granting of a basic pension should be waived if the widow or her deceased breadwinner has been a resident in the country for at least ten years. Please explain to what extent the above conditions of entitlement to the survivors’ benefit in the Norwegian legislation may be brought in line with the requirements of the Convention.

Article 24(2)(a). Reduced benefit. The Committee notes that the calculation of the reduced benefit is made “in the case of a standard beneficiary whose breadwinner has completed a period of 5 years of residence and 5 years of earning pension points”. It points out that under Article 24(2)(a) of Convention No. 128 and Article 63(2)(a) of the ECSS, a reduced survivors’ benefit shall be secured after the late breadwinner has completed five years of contribution or employment without any qualifying period of residence. Please indicate whether a reduced survivors’ benefit would be payable to a standard beneficiary whose late breadwinner can prove five years of contribution or employment but no residence in Norway.

Article 25 (duration of benefit) in conjunction with Article 33(1) (coordination of benefits). According to The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015, a surviving spouse will, at age 67, be transferred to old-age pension, and receive his/her personally acquired supplementary pension, or 55 per cent of the aggregated supplementary pension of both the survivor and the deceased, if this is more favourable. The Committee recalls that under the Convention, unlike the invalidity benefit which can be replaced by an old-age benefit, the survivors’ benefit shall be granted throughout the contingency and cannot be limited by a prescribed age. In case the surviving spouse becomes entitled to an old-age benefit, which is another social security benefit provide for under Convention No. 128, she shall receive in total at least the amount of the most favourable benefit. Please explain how the rules for the coordination between social security benefits prescribed by Article 33 of the Convention, are observed in this case.

Standards to be complied with by periodical payments. Part XI of Convention No. 102, Articles 65 and 66. Determination of the reference wage. The Government states that, following the ILO guidelines of cross-tabulating ISIC rev.4 and ISCO-08/major group 7, the reference wage is determined according to Article 65(6)(b) of Convention No. 102 as the average annual pay for a male worker with an occupation in the category Crafts and related trades workers, in the industry Wholesale and retail trade containing the highest number of male employees in Norway. The pay is based on payment for normal working hours, seven and a half hours a day, five days a week, 260 days per year. It does not include pay for overtime, but covers basic salaries, variable additional allowances and bonuses. In 2015, the reference wage amounted to NOK422,400. While taking due note of this information, the Committee asks the Government to also determine the reference wage of an ordinary adult male labourer in accordance with Article 66 of the Convention. The Committee will examine the question of the adequacy of social security benefits, including guaranteed or minimum benefits, once the Government had reviewed the calculations of their replacement rates in relation to the reference wage of the skilled employee or an ordinary labourer, as appropriate, taking into consideration the detailed explanations given in the present comments.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Integrated management of Norway’s obligations under different social security instruments. The Committee notes the reports on the application of Conventions Nos 102, 118, 128 and 130, which together formed the annual report of Norway to the Council of Europe on the application of the European Code of Social Security (ECSS) and its Protocol. The supervision of these regional instruments is entrusted to the Committee in accordance with the arrangement made between the Council of Europe and the International Labour Organization under Article 74(4) of the ECSS. The resulting alignment of the reporting obligations under the ECSS and ILO Conventions Nos 102, 121, 128, 130 and 168 pursued the objective of reducing the administrative workload for governments and avoiding duplication of reports. For this purpose, the report form on the ECSS expressly stipulates that, if a government is bound by similar obligations as a result of having ratified Convention No. 102, “it may communicate to the Council of Europe copies of the reports it submits to the International Labour Office on the implementation of this Convention”. Where certain Parts of Convention No. 102 (for Norway – Parts III, V, IX and X) have ceased to be applicable due to ratification of the corresponding Parts of the more advanced Conventions Nos 128 and 130, governments may equally communicate to the Council of Europe copies of their reports on these Conventions. Conversely, the information provided by the Government in its reports on the ECSS and the relevant provisions of the European Social Charter is regularly taken into account by the Committee in assessing the application of ILO social security Conventions. To facilitate the integrated management of Norway’s obligations under different social security instruments, the Committee refers the Government to the coordination tables, reporting timelines and relevant comments of the supervisory bodies compiled in the ILO Technical Note on the state of application of the provisions for social security of the international treaties on social rights ratified by Norway, published in the country profile on the NORMLEX database.

Consolidated reporting on social security Conventions. Besides the reports, the Government has supplied its reply to the questions raised in the Committee’s previous conclusions on the ECSS and the publication of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs on The Norwegian Social Insurance Scheme, January 2015. In order to analyse this information within a unified legal framework for a comprehensive social security system, the Committee has consolidated it in a single report covering all branches of social security included in Convention No. 102 and the ECSS. Where appropriate, it was completed with the information extracted from the MISSOC database and Norway’s previous reports on the ECSS and ILO social security Conventions supplied during the period 2006–16. The Committee has not taken into account the reports prior to 2006 as the information contained in them is likely to be outdated. The resulting Consolidated Report (CR) thus contains all the relevant information provided by Norway over the last decade on the application of these instruments and permits to greatly improve the quality of reporting in terms of the completeness of the information available, coherence across different schemes and benefits providing protection, and the efficacy of the regulatory framework governing the national social security system.

With regard to the completeness of the available information describing the Norwegian social security system, the analysis of the CR reveals certain persistent information gaps which do not permit to assess compliance with the indicated provisions of the Conventions, as is the case for example with Article 69 of Convention No. 102 and corresponding provisions of other Conventions defining situations which may lead to the suspension of benefits. Not only these provisions are highlighted in the CR, but relevant questions of the report forms on the ECSS and ILO Conventions are included as a reminder to complete the CR with the requested information. The Committee draws the Government’s attention to the fact that, since 2006, its reports do not contain any information on the following provisions:

Convention No. 102 – Part II (Medical care), Articles 8, 10(1)(3) and (4), 11 and 12; Part VI (Employment injury benefit), Articles 32, 34, 35, 37 and 38; Part VII (Family benefit), Articles 43 and 44; Part XIII (Common provisions), Articles 69 (for Parts II, III, V, VI, VII, IX and X), 70 (for Parts II and VII), 71 and 72 (for Part II);

Convention No. 128 – Articles 13, 25, 31, 32 and 33;

Convention No. 130 – Articles 7, 9, 13, 15, 16, 28, 29, 30, 31 and 32;

Convention No. 168 – Articles 7, 18, 24, 25, 26 and 30.

With respect to the clarity of the information provided, particularly as regards rules and elements taken into account for the calculation of the level of benefits, in many instances it requires technical clarifications from the national experts and concrete references to the corresponding provisions of the national regulations. In order to facilitate the experts’ dialogue on these highly technical issues which depend upon the context in which they are used, the statements in question are highlighted and appropriate marks and questions are entered by the Committee directly in the text of the CR. In view of the significant volume (120 pages) and the complexity of the CR covering all branches of the national social security system, it is also equipped with user friendly navigation signs and summary tables. The information included by the Government in its reports but which is not directly relevant to the legal obligations under the respective Conventions, is reproduced in the annexes to the CR. The Committee attaches the Consolidated Report to the present conclusions and asks the Government to complete it following the indications inside with the missing information, technical clarifications, provisions of the national legislation and statistics.

The Committee raises the most important issues in the request addressed directly to the Government.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

Part IV (Unemployment benefit) of the Convention. The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in reply to its previous direct request concerning the definition of the contingency given in Article 20 of the Convention by reference to "suitable employment". In view of the fact that the same issue arises in the application of the Employment Promotion and Protection against Unemployment Convention, 1988 (No. 168), which is also ratified by Norway, the Committee decided to pursue the dialogue with the Government on this question under this latter instrument and looks forward to receiving the Government’s reply to its direct request of 1999 concerning Convention No. 168.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1996, published 85th ILC session (1997)

Part IV (Unemployment benefit) of the Convention. The Committee notes from the Government's report that a number of changes have been adopted in the Norwegian unemployment benefit system which will become effective on 1 January 1997. It would like the Government to supply information on the incidence of these modifications on the relevant provisions of Part IV. In particular, it asks the Government to supply information on the application in practice of the obligation put on the recipient of unemployment benefit to accept any employment remunerated according to a wage scale or customary practice, in view of the definition of the contingency provided for under Article 20 of the Convention, which includes suspension of earnings due to inability to obtain suitable employment. The Committee would appreciate receiving the text of the relevant law or regulation pertaining to these changes.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1989, published 76th ILC session (1989)

The Committee has examined the detailed report supplied by the Government and notes with interest the adjustment to the basic amount of all benefits and to the special supplement to certain of these benefits, as well as the increases in family allowances. The Committee also notes the amendments to the National Insurance Act during the period covered by the report, and the various regulations issued under this Act. The Committee hopes that the Government will not fail to continue to take account of the provisions of the Convention in any restrictive measure that it may have to take in the future in order to maintain the financial equilibrium of the insurance scheme.

The Committee would none the less appreciate more detailed information on the following points.

Part II (Medical care), Article 10, paragraphs 1(a)(iii) and 2, of the Convention. The Committee takes note of the Government's statement to the effect that, as a general rule, medical care beneficiaries pay the total costs of pharmaceutical supplies in the case of a morbid condition, except for certain medications for long-term use in the case of chronic diseases. These medications which are published in a special list, are partly reimbursed by the insurance. The Committee also notes that under section 2-5, subsection 3, of the above-mentioned Act, as amended in 1986, only vital drugs, hearing aids and necessary and appropriate supporting bandages or prosthetic appliances are reimbursed; serums and vaccines which were previously included have also been deleted.

Since the above-mentioned provisions of the Convention stipulate that medical benefits must also include essential pharmaceutical supplies in the cost of which the beneficiary may be required to share, but not to bear the entire amount, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the manner in which full effect is given to the Convention on this point and to provide the list of vital drugs that are reimbursable.