A blow to teachers and all public personnel who will soon retire at the age of 55.
According to a National Assembly proposal, the law should be changed to lower the age from 60
In conclusion, a legislative proposal to reduce the statutory retirement age to 55 has been brought before Parliament.
Lyn Mengich, the chairperson of the SRC, stated on Tuesday that 60 should continue to be the nation’s mandatory retirement age.
A proposal to reduce the retirement age to 55 has been met with opposition by the Salaries and Remunerations Commission (SRC).
The current required retirement age is sixty years old for teachers and public employees, and sixty-five years old for those with disabilities.
A legislative proposal to reduce the mandatory retirement age to 55 has been presented to Parliament, nevertheless.
The goal, according to the proposal’s proponents, is to provide more young people with possibilities to advance professionally in the service industry.
However, SRC Chairperson Lyn Mengich stated on Tuesday that 60 should continue to be the nation’s statutory retirement age.
She contended that if the retirement age were lowered, more people would receive pensions because taxpayers would be required to bear a larger pension responsibility.
“It’s important to consider the global norm as it provides us with a reference point, and it’s true that some nations have no retirement age,” she stated on Spice FM.
“What works for Kenya should be the topic of discussion. If you state that people retire at age 55, it implies that even though they are pensionable at that age, they are still productive and able to make meaningful contributions to the nation.
She went on to say that it would be unfeasible to let go of workers at a relatively young age when they still have a wealth of experience that supports the Kenyan labor force.
Reducing the retirement age to 55 is the goal of the Public Service Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2023.
The government increased the retirement age in 2009 from 55 to 60 years old and gave all Kenyans with disabilities who worked in the public sector an additional five years.
The government was having trouble paying its enormous pension obligation as more individuals were leaving the service, which was the stated rationale for the study at the time.
The goal of the Bill, which Embakasi Central MP Benjamin Gathiru introduced, was to change the existing Act by prohibiting any officer from serving in an acting capacity for longer than six months.
The National Treasury disbursed pension and gratuity payments totaling Sh69.22 billion in the six months ending in December 2021.
35% of national government workers were between the ages of 51 and 60, according to an audit done in 2016.
The Public Service Commission’s (PSC) annual report for the Financial Year 2021/2022 states that 3,958 officers in 47 ministries, departments, and agencies departed the service.
A blow to teachers and all public personnel who will soon retire at the age of 55.
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