NETHERLANDS - The €7.6bn pension fund for the printing industry, PGB, will apply an indexation of 1.5% to pension rights and benefits as of January 1 2007, it has announced.

The decision is based on a coverage ratio of 137.5%, and a cost-of-living index of 1.8%, the industry-wide scheme said. The indexation over 2006 is 1%.

The scheme's internal directive allows for an indexation of 80%, if the funding ratio is between 130% and 140%, it added.

PGB has a conditional indexation, subject to the scheme's financial position, and agreement of its board.

The pension fund has decided to set the deductible franchise at €12,880, up from €12.691 in 2006. This is the part of the salary for which pension contributions don't need to be paid, but it doesn't entitle to pension rights either.

The pension contributions for 2007 have been set at 17.5% of the pension base, which is the salary-before-tax, minus the deductible franchise. Of this premium, 6.75% will be paid by the employer.

PGB is part of the Grafische Bedrijfsfondsen, or GBF, which carries out social schemes for 3,000 employers in the graphics industry. It has 60,000 active members, 30,000 pensioners and 200,000 deferred members.