HOSPITAL CONSULTANTS, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists and social workers are to be excluded from the Government’s new incentivised early retirement scheme for the public service.
The Department of Health issued a circular yesterday explaining how the scheme would be applied in the health sector.
The document said that members of other grades would have access to the new early retirement scheme only on condition that the staff groups concerned co-operated with requirements on redeployment, mobility, skill mix and flexibility which were set out in an employment control framework drawn up by health service management.
The department said that while the new scheme was intended to contribute significant and ongoing savings to the exchequer, it had to be implemented in a manner which did not undermine the provision of essential services.
It said the incentivised early retirement scheme did not therefore apply to grades which were exempted from the Government’s recent moratorium on recruitment and promotions.
Medical consultants, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, clinical psychologists, behavioural therapists, counsellors (mental health and disability services), social workers and emergency medical technicians were excluded from the new scheme.
“These grades have been exempted from the moratorium and excluded from the incentivised scheme for early retirement in order to meet the requirements of integrated health care delivery and, in particular, to address needs in the community in respect of care of the elderly and people with disabilities,” it stated.
The new scheme allows for an eligible civil or public servant aged 50 or over to retire without actuarial reduction of pension entitlements.
Ten per cent of the relevant lump sum will be payable immediately, with the balance paid later at the normal retirement age of 60 or 65. However, for those who apply now, the full lump sum will not be taxed, even if the Government introduces such a measure in future years.
The Government has also introduced a new incentivised career break scheme. This would see staff in the public sector receive a payment of up to €12,500 annually if they take a three-year break.
A new scheme to allow staff to take special unpaid leave for up to 13 weeks has also been proposed.
In an answer to a written parliamentary question earlier this week, Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan suggested that that new initiatives aimed at curbing payroll costs could save up to €150 million this year.
“While the exchequer savings arising in respect of each of the above schemes cannot be projected with certainty, as they are dependent on take-up in each case and other factors, taken together it is estimated that the above package of measures could yield payroll savings of the order of €150 million in 2009 and €300 million in a full year,” Mr Lenihan said.
