KUALA LUMPUR – Putrajaya should first review the pensions of elected representatives and those holding government posts, before switching to a non-pensionable scheme for civil servants, the Congress of Employees’ Unions in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) said.
Cuepacs president Datuk Adnan Mat said the government must review if federal spending on pensions for politicians was costlier than for civil servants.
Elected representatives also serve a shorter time, some for only one term, compared to the 30 years a career government worker gives to public service, he added.
“If financial constraints prevent the government from continuing pensions for the civil service, then the government also needs to review pensions for MPs and state assemblymen.
“Currently, politicians who are elected as people’s representatives, and politicians appointed to executive positions such as exco, minister and deputy minister, are also eligible to receive a pension,” he told Scoop.
“The abolition of pensions to this group first is the right step because most of them would serve for around five years only.
“The priority for the government at the moment should be to study these cases where they serve a short time but enjoy the benefits of a relatively comfortable pension, instead of targeting civil servants only,” Adnan added.
His remarks follow new developments in the civil service, where new civil servant hires from February 1 will be taken on contract only as an interim measure before the government introduces a new recruitment scheme for the public sector.
The new scheme will help Putrajaya deal with a rising pensions bill for the public sector that numbers 1.7 million workers, the highest per capita in the world.
Yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the new recruitment policy, currently being fine-tuned, would see non-pensionable permanent employment for new civil servants.
“They will contribute to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), and the government will provide contributions just like private sector employees,” Zahid was reported as saying by Bernama in Sg Merab yesterday.
Government pension payments would reach RM120 billion by 2040 if nothing were to be done.
However, existing civil servants hired before the new policy comes into force will still be pensionable.
Adnan today urged the government to hold discussions first with stakeholders before making a decision to abolish the pension scheme for new civil servants with permanent status.
“The government should hold an engagement session (discussion) first, before proceeding to make the EPF contribution scheme mandatory for new appointments.
“The civil service’s salary scheme is still low at the moment, and contributing to EPF is not seen as helpful in building good savings for retirement.
“That is why most civil servants prefer the pension scheme,” Adnan said. – January 25, 2024
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