DONAL FORRESTER SERVED as a soldier and garda for more than 36 years but last week he retired from An Garda Síochána and signed on the dole because he cannot get access to his contributory State pension.
Forrester – who worked in a specialist firearms training role – along with a number of colleagues have completed their time but they are delayed in getting access to their full pension entitlements.
The problem affects dozens of gardaí and he believes it will soon affect hundreds as their time for retirement comes.
The reason for this is a bureaucratic anomaly. Most gardaí who joined the force on post-1995 contracts must mandatorily retire by 60 – yet rules state that they cannot access their full pension until 66.
Because of this issue the former gardaí cannot access their full pension that they paid into on a weekly basis for the duration of their service. They must instead sign on for Jobseekers Benefit and declare themselves unemployed and looking for work.
The situation, Forrester told The Journal, gets even more ridiculous because Jobseekers’ Benefit is only available for nine months. They must then apply to get a letter from the Department of Social Protection so that they can avail of the state supplementary pension to give them the money they are entitled to until they reach 66.
Forrester is not alone in suffering the consequences of this measure. The Journal understands that a recently medically discharged garda who was shot on duty is also having to sign on the dole.
“I feel betrayed by this, and I know the other people involved in this do too and we are just angry.
“I have served the State and that service is not reciprocated by the State. Being told I have to go on the dole after giving that kind of service is just an insult,” Forrester said.
It’s understood efforts are under way at Government level to find a fix. However sources have said that it would require action from the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform (DPER) which has not happened as yet.
While the Department of Public Expenditure did not respond to a request for a statement, at a press conference this week The Journal asked Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe for his perspective on the issue and whether it would be resolved.
“It is a feature of the fact that we have a small number of our public servants at the moment that reflects the fact that their working career is shorter and they therefore have to retire earlier than others do.
“In return for this they do have a very strong public pension scheme in place and we are considering this issue at the moment,” Donohoe said.
A spokesperson for An Garda Síochána said the organisation was aware of the issue but said the problem was one for the Government.
Forrester said that the problem is further complicated because he said former gardaí are being told that if they seek any work to meet the shortfall that their access to the supplementary pension will be further delayed and that they may lose it.
A supplementary pension is generally available to retirees to make up a shortfall in the period between the date of retirement and the age of eligibility for the State Contributory Pension.
Forrester has written directly to Minister for Justice Helen McEntee and received a response from the department stating that the Garda representative associations have raised the issue.
The response said that McEntee had raised the issue with Donohoe and Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys.
The correspondence from Justice said that the matter was being examined by DPER.
A government source said that it is anticipated that both the mandatory retirement age for gardaí and the pensions issue may be addressed by Government by the summer.
A Department of Justice spokesperson said that officials were working on a solution.
“I can confirm that individuals are required to engage with the Department of Social Protection (DSP) to exhaust their Social Insurance entitlements in order to qualify for the payment of an Occupational Supplementary.
“The rules surrounding qualifying for a Social Insurance benefit are a matter for the DSP.This Department is aware that the process for qualifying for the payment of an Occupational Supplementary Pension, in particular the requirement to ‘sign on’, is creating issues for some retired public servants,” the spokesperson said.
“In that light, DPENDPR have been reviewing the current process with a view of establishing a more efficient and, where possible, a technologically enabled approach to eligibility testing that will remove undue cost for all parties involved, while preserving the principle of Exchequer neutrality,” Justice added.
Ronan Slevin, the Garda Representative Association General Secretary, said: “The issue regarding supplementary pensions is one that has been of serious concern to the GRA over the past number of years.
“In fact, I have continually raised the matter with the Minister for Justice and have since received correspondence from her colleagues in the Department of Finance stating that they are reviewing the issue as a matter of urgency.”
For Forrester and his ex-colleagues eventual Government action will be too late.
“I feel betrayed. I feel I’m being discriminated against. Our service has been completely belittled.
Referring to the responses from the various government departments he said: “The worst thing is I believe that none of them will step up and deal with this – it shows the contempt in which frontline gardaí are viewed by the State.”
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