Pension changes would have us all work ‘til we drop..
THE mere idea of increasing the retirement age is a backward step... to the 19th century.
The world’s first state pension system was introduced by Germany’s chancellor Otto von Bismarck in the 1880s.
But the cute hoor made the retirement age 70 – at a time when the life expectancy was just 40.
Our own Pension Commission’s proposal to increase the pension age brings a whole new meaning to having old age creep up on you.
They want it upped by three months every year from 2028 until it reaches 67 in 2031.
But that is just to whet their appetite.
They are looking at second helpings – literally eating into our lives.
The next not-so-hot idea is to stew workers alive by slowly turning up the heat on the pension age by three months every two years from 2033 onwards, to bring it up to 68 by 2039.
You don’t need to be Isaac Newton to put together two and two and see where all this is going.
The proposal was pooh-poohed by the Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection earlier this week.
But it was concerning how Taoiseach Micheal Martin only said he would keep an “open mind” about their recommendation to keep it at 66.
Hard-working Paddy only gets to put the feet up for a maximum dozen years before popping his clogs? It doesn’t add up.
Life expectancy may have been 80.5 years for men and 84.1 years for women during pre-covid times in 2018, according to the HSE.
I will not swear on the bible, but I cannot recall any deceased working-class acquaintances of mine ever reaching such high Cardinal numbers.
Some might argue that only clergy and ruling classes easily become octogenarians.
While those getting their hands dirty in the traditional sense usually never have a prayer on that score.
Privileged politicians who make these life-changing decisions for Joe Public don’t have a personal vested interest at stake.
They will sail off into the sunset at a relatively young-ish age with pension pots that would make a leprechaun green with envy.
Meanwhile taxpayers who bankroll such lavish lifestyles won’t have a pot to piddle in when finally “gifted” a state pension – earning no more than €253.30 after 48 years of PRSI contributions.
There should be different retire
Hard-working Paddy gets a dozen years before popping his clogs
ment ages for blue-collar and white-collar workers.
Hard grafters on less than €50k a year should not be forced to work beyond age 62, which would help reduce unemployment figures.
The Government argues the retirement age should be increased or there won’t be enough taxpaying workers to support an ageing population.
They should get their own house in order first, by imposing sensible salary and pension caps for anybody earning a crust from taxpayers’ money.
Civil servant bigwigs trousering more than US President Joe Biden is just scandalous.
No public worker in the state – including RTE presenters and top civil servants – should earn more than the Taoiseach’s salary of €211,742.
Nor should there be any government pension schemes worth €50k a year.
State employees on six-figure salaries should have mandatory private-only pension plans.
Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe should get his pocket calculator out and see how much all these pennypinching exercises could save the exchequer.
It’s bad enough that hard workers are run ragged, like reallife voodoo dolls left feeling the pinch.
Upping the retirement age even further is nothing better than voodoo economics.
It is a glorified pyramid scheme, with those at the bottom only mining mineral pyrite.
Ireland Inc is robbing the workforce blind of precious time in their golden years.