Trudy Simpson, Staff Reporter
GOVERNMENT pensioners who retired before 1995 are seeking a 100 per cent increase to their monthly stipend, an end to income tax deductions from the pensions of senior citizens over 75 and a halt to "gender discrimination" in disbursing National Insurance Scheme (NIS) benefits.
Some men complained yesterday that the discrimination allowed women to access pensions five years earlier than they do.
The pensioners, several of whom worked in the public service for more than 40 years, said they were "suffering" on pensions which ranged between $10,000 and $25,000 monthly and need an increase to make ends meet following increased costs for goods and medical and other services.
At the 36th annual general meeting of their association yesterday, pensioners, among them retired secretaries, clerical officers, skilled technicians, junior and middle managers and other professionals, called on the Government to hear their plea and to honour the promise of proper care they indirectly made to workers who retired prior to 1995.
"These are people who are working for 30 and 40 years and end up today with a pension of $11,000 or $12,000 so they are not able even to use a day's worker (helper) one day for the week," said one retired professional, who did not want her name used.
"These were people who were upper middle class and accustomed to their good life and who unfortunately took the Government at its word, that if you work well and do 30 odd years, you will get a pension but what they were not aware of was the quality of the pension. So while you do get the pension, it's all farcical because a lot of them have medical bills, water, light and telephone (bills). The pension doesn't even pay one half of that let alone buy food and pay for a household helper," she said.
The pensioners want the 100 per cent increase to apply to persons who get less than $40,000 a month. They also want a guarantee that they will get paid post 1995 pension rates no matter which year they had retired.
A document from immediate past secretary, Horace Tomlinson, indicated that the pension being given to persons who retired at a post just below permanent secretary after 1995 was over five times more than that of someone who retired in 1980 at the same position.
REAL VALUE OF PENSION
According to the document, a pensioner's salary at retirement in 1980 was $20,000 per annum. Two thirds of that, $13,000 was the pension and calculated in US dollars at the 1980 exchange rate ($1.78), it would have amounted to a decent salary.
But inflation has increased significantly since 1980 and so the real value of the pension would have fallen by nine or more per cent yearly or US$700 annually over the last 23 years.
The document showed that retirement minimum pension for persons just below the level of Permanent Secretary in 2003 could go up to over $2 million, more than five and a half times the 1980 figure.
"The minimum pension is $10,000 but then $10,000 is not getting us any where today," Mr. Tomlinson said, after the meeting, which was held at Stephanie Hall, Holy Childhood High, Skibo Avenue in St. Andrew.
Fitz Jackson, Minister of State in the Finance Ministry under which the Government pension scheme falls, did not respond to messages left for him yesterday.
Regarding NIS pensions, Faith Innerarity, Senior Director, Social Security, said the gender disparity in access to benefits were developed in 1966 when women were at a disadvantage because they did not have as many sources as men from which to access benefits.
The situation has changed and so social security officials are re-examining the issue internally and will make an announcement in the future.
Pensions are calculated based on all the contributions made by an employee over his or her working life. A formula is then applied to the figure to arrive at the portion of allowance to be paid, whether half, three-quarter or full.
