Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 July 2018
9. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform when he plans to roll out the supplementary pension in respect of public service pensions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28991/18]
View answerThis is a continuation of my previous comments. As the Minister indicated, there is a provision for people to stay on in the public service if their employers so wish. However, if someone decides to stay on, for example, an usher in the Houses, beyond the retirement age of 65 years, he or she will effectively be in a supplementary position. People are being advised that they will revert to the first point on their employment scales, which is a significant loss of approximately €100 per week. I am wondering what is the logic of this.
I am sure we will get the answer.
That is different from how the Deputy's written question was interpreted. The written question refers to the supplementary pension, which I took to refer to the future of auto-enrolment. Clearly, the Deputy-----
Sorry. There was confusing correspondence on the question.
The Minister might-----
If he wishes to answer me, that would be fine.
We are short on time.
I am aware of the matter-----
Given the reference to supplementary pensions-----
Deputy, we are short on time and others are waiting.
-----and the fact that auto-enrolment was not mentioned, I believed this was about the Department of Finance's supplementary pension.
If the Members wish to deal with this outside, I would be happy.
No, I will answer the question the Deputy has just raised. Her previous question was on the abolition of the retirement age for people who worked in our public services.
They are related.
Yes. The Deputy's current question is on the principle of abatement and why it is the case that someone who avails of the interim arrangements returns on the minimum point on the salary scale, which gives the appearance of his or her weekly or monthly income being below what it was. We now have a well-established principle in our public services that, if a retiree is rehired, he or she resumes work on the minimum point. This is to ensure that the combination of the salary earned and the pension payment received is not greater than what he or she would have been earning had he or she remained in full employment.
In any event, this arrangement will fall when the full legislation is enacted. I anticipate that the legislation will be passed by the Houses quickly, given the level of support for the measure.
I am asking these questions for a reason. It is clear that, at all levels in the public sector, a significant number of retirements are taking place. Many others are in the cohort approaching retirement age. People must make that decision some years, if not months, in advance and consult their families. Across the public service, people of considerable skill and experience would like to stay on.
Regarding those on the supplementary pension scheme, I welcome the Minister's statement about his forthcoming legislation. There is talk of an election in the autumn. The Minister might comment on that as well if he likes, and he and Deputy Cowen might reach an agreement across the floor. We need a plan to incentivise people with particular skills, expertise and experience to stay on, given the growing skill shortages in the public service.
The Deputy spoke about retaining experienced staff. Thankfully, people are staying healthy for longer and many want to work for longer. People also find themselves having to support families now in a way that previous generations did not.
The Deputy asked for a plan. We have one. It is in the legislation that I will bring to the Government meeting on Thursday. Once passed, it will provide a framework for legally allowing those who want to work for longer to do so. The cause of many of the questions on this matter that I have dealt with in recent months relates to the interim measures that we introduced. Had I not introduced those, however, none of the workers in question would have been in a position to stay on for longer. Approximately 100 people currently working in the Civil Service would not be there now.
