Comments on: Video: Premier On Retirement Age & Pensions

By: Politricks

Politricks — Wed, 22 Aug 2018 18:38:03 +0000

Then what happens to the younger generation trying to get jobs, but can’t because people are working longer?

A double edged sword really.

By: Triangle Drifter

Triangle Drifter — Mon, 20 Aug 2018 01:03:45 +0000

There you go. The people get what they voted for. Too bad those who did not vote for them get saddled with the ineptitude as well. The brain drain & general flight out of Bermuda will continue. The jewel of the Atlantic no more.

By: My My My

My My My — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 21:09:07 +0000

Not to worry, we the people have the option to save our Pension, by voting the PLP out, and putting in the people that can run the country.

By: Hey

Hey — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 16:15:44 +0000

What PLP is basically saying is that we will have to to work longer to pay more in, sacrificing 3 years of our lives AND get 3 years less money out of the pension, so it is a double whammy !! We pay in for three more years and get don’t get any pension for three years. 6 years of without!!

Also by people not retiring from jobs, it takes away the opportunities of those looking for work. So three years worth of work seeking young adults having no jobs to go into. So our children and grandchildren will suffer.

Time to march.

By: trudi pugh

trudi pugh — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 15:18:03 +0000

What happens to those who turn 65 and are eligible for land tax exemption when living in the main residence? If that age boundary jumps to 68 , it seems so unfair to those who have sensibly planned their financial future.
No wonder there is a brain drain of young, middle age and retired Bermudians.
Lest we forget that most of us have always invested our heart, soul and finances into our island community.
Be prepared for a further exodus of those contributing to our tax base.

Yes, I would like my government pension, but the plans for this to be guaranteed must not be planned overnight!

By: Retro

Retro — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 15:03:16 +0000

It ain’t rocket science!

By: jt

jt — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 14:17:22 +0000

Wonder how that immigration reform thingy is coming along? How would anyone know?

By: mos

mos — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 13:08:35 +0000

If only there was someway to have more people paying into the system – some sort of affluent group of people that want to live and contribute to the island and make lives here on a permanent basis…

By: jt

jt — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 12:40:27 +0000

This will not come close to resolving the pension fund issue. He needs to show real courage and get rid of defined benefit plans in government and civil service.

By: Hmmmm

Hmmmm — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 12:37:04 +0000

retro.. This is exactly what I said would happen when the plp implemented the “term limits”. Increasing the the retirement are isn’t the answer!! We need more (young) people paying into the pension fund. In many countries they are reducing the retirement age to free up jobs for those young people to fill…

By: Retro

Retro — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 04:12:28 +0000

This really annoys me. There is only one logical approach to solving our inevitable pension problem and that is growing the tax base .i know that is antithetical to how the Plp campaigned but for crying out loud to not try to achieve population growth is completely socially irresponsible. If protectionism worked our economy wouldn’t have shrunk so much when the previous Plp government introduced term limits for foreign workers. We cannot afford to forget this fact. If Burt genuinely wants to have a positive lasting legacy he should abandon the “ us and them “ politics that works for elections but is disastrous for the economy.

By: Hey

Hey — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 02:10:27 +0000

What the heck? Why do I have to work more years when I should be enjoying retirement. Working people to the grave….

PLP took a pension fund holiday, not contributing to the pension fund and using that money for spending, so why should we have to pay for the PLP stupidity.

By: Sister Nancy

Sister Nancy — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:22:35 +0000

This is just great news now isn’t it !!! So what happens to someone that has paid their whole life to find out at 65 you cannot have your pension until you 68. WOW unbelievable. They had no right dipping it to money that was rightfully not theirs to take. Pathetic bunch glad I did not vote for them. Yet I will feel the effects of the situation.

By: Question

Question — Sun, 19 Aug 2018 00:15:13 +0000

He didn’t mention this during the election. I thought this guy was supposed to be “brilliant”. Turns out he’s a loser.

By: Nab

Nab — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 22:28:55 +0000

At which point you can expect a class action law suit!
Good luck

By: Paul

Paul — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 22:28:21 +0000

I am so fed up with the PLP, we are in debt !!!!!!! and this government seems to think we need to spend more money… to think we gave 70k to somerset cricket club !!!! and what was that all about ? and now we are going to put money into the horrible grant atlantic fiasco…. ( thanks to Ewart Brown.)

By: Portia

Portia — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 20:28:12 +0000

I get what the Premier is saying, but there’s an important distinction that I think the Government is overlooking here. When he talks about raising the retirement age, he is talking only about raising the age at which you can begin to collect your Government old age pension (so, say they will raise it from 65 to 68). But in most businesses, the policy is that you are expected to retire at 65, unless you are a key staff member. It is entirely up to the company’s discretion as to whether they keep you on. So the actual “retirement age” (i.e. when you are expected to leave the job) will still be 65.

This creates a major problem as seniors will be leaving a job at 65 but unable to receive an old-age pension to supplement their income until they are 68. Yes, there is still the pension saved from working at the company, through contributions which the worker (hopefully) has paid into, but this is not designed to replace 100% of your income. To meet the shortfall, and due to the difficulties of getting hired at another job in your 60s, many seniors will be forced to seek Financial Assistance. This will not save Government money. You are simply robbing Peter to pay Paul.

The only way to avoid this problem would be if Government legislated that a business cannot force a person to retire before 68. Yet there is no mention of this. When the Human Rights Act was amended in 2013 the Government refused to add “age” as a category which could not be discriminated against, for this very reason, because it would force companies to stop retiring people at 65. Raising the retirement age (for receiving Government pensions) without considering this could leave many older workers in a very bad situation.

By: Ringmaster

Ringmaster — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 19:25:57 +0000

Premier Burt is ignoring the larger elephant and that is the Civil Service Pension Fund. That fund will likely run out of money quicker as defined benefits are unsustainable. Then the Consolidated Fund will need to be raided to support it, and the dominoes will fall.

By: Pickled Tink

Pickled Tink — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 19:25:34 +0000

A greater effort should be made to ensure that people are actually paying into their pension. Their is nobody policing it. I can tell you that based on my personal conversations with people, many small business owners, and self employed persons pay in cash or partially in cash to avoid paying what they should in payroll tax and pension. so when pension time comes, those of us that have paid will be expected to pay for those seniors that didn’t. many don’t pay medical either…until someone gets hurt.

By: You never listen to me!

You never listen to me! — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 18:08:18 +0000

There should be a project or plan like the sugar tax, that would dedicate funds to the pension fund!