10% Pension Increase For Public Sector Retirees
The Government introduced legislation to “provide a 10% increase in pensions for public sector retirees” and said that “payments will begin in October 2026 and will include retroactive amounts back to April 2026.”
A Government spokesperson said, “On Friday, the Government introduced the Pensions [Increase] Amendment Act 2026 to provide a 10% increase in pensions for public sector retirees, effective from 1 April 2026. Public sector pensions have been frozen since 2014, and this increase is another promise made to retirees that the Government is delivering on.”
Premier and Minister of Finance David Burt said, “This increase recognises the service of public sector retirees and delivers additional financial support, while also reflecting our responsibility to ensure the long-term sustainability of the pension fund.”
The spokesperson said, “Payments will begin in October 2026 and will include retroactive amounts back to April 2026, ensuring there is no loss to retirees because of the implementation timeline. The increase was made possible because the Public Service Superannuation Fund [PSSF] has been stabilised through the Public Service Superannuation [Stabilisation] Amendment Act 2025, which placed public sector pensions on a stable financial footing.”
But not for all retirees? Why?
Here we go again. The government especially this government has increased the payouts from the pension fund and even promised retroactive pay yet they have failed to say that the fund will go bust in the relatively near future. This is basic math, if you continue to insist on increasing the output without any additional income the fund will run out. However they have already approached the public sector workers and said that the plan they have to compensate for this is to have the workers pay more into the fund and work for longer. Perhaps until 70 years old before receiving the benefits. This may sound good on the surface to some but I remind you that each individual worker’s contribution is kept as a separate record and that plus the government’s identical contribution and interest payments over the years is what the individual worker is supposed to be receiving their benefits from. However the public sector has the worst benefits payouts policy. In the end it matters not what you contribute but what your final salary is and far too often the recipients receive a pension higher than what their pension account can afford and the funds are drawn from the “pot” that the younger generation is pouring into. The sad reality is in less than three decades the “pot” will have been drained completely leaving everyone who will retire at that point without any benefits to have after contributing for a lifetime. So I do not support this ploy to gain seniors’ support ahead of a change of leadership in the PLP. I see the bigger picture and question what about the children of the future generations? This current elected government will not be in power when the money runs out and they have no real plan to deal with that reality. They are literally signing a check with their mouth that the funds cannot sustain!!!
“The increase was made possible because the Public Service Superannuation Fund [PSSF] has been stabilised through the Public Service Superannuation [Stabilisation] Amendment Act 2025, which placed public sector pensions on a stable financial footing”
What kind of mathematical magic made that possible?
As long ago as the early 1990s government actuaries reported that the superannuation fund was unsustainable. By the late 1990s the government actuaries reported that the superannuation fund had over $1 BILLION in unfunded liabilities.
Whilst the PLP Government will not reveal Bermuda’s true financial position, what we do know is that our current account is nearly $4 BILLION in debt and more than 25 years after the government actuaries reported that the superannuation fund had over $1 BILLION in unfunded liabilities, we have more than $4 billion in unfunded pension liabilities in addition to our current account debt.
It is notable that neither the PLP Government spokesperson nor the Premier and Minister of Finance David Burt suggested how much this 10% increase will cost the taxpayer or where the money will come from. I can only conclude that the PLP Government will borrow more money to fund this increase in pension payments.
Oh, and a 10% increase is more than 3 times the current rate of retail price inflation in Bermuda according to Premier and Minister of Finance David Burt.
“It is notable that neither the PLP Government spokesperson nor the Premier and Minister of Finance David Burt suggested how much this 10% increase will cost the taxpayer or where the money will come from. I can only conclude that the PLP Government will borrow more money to fund this increase in pension payments.”
The budget clearly indicated a surplus for last year and projected one for next year. Clearly these funds will be used to uplift the seniors. The OBA and its supporters hate the idea that public service workers who in the most recent history, are majority black Bermudians, will actually be helped by their government. And of course, there must be the accusation of mismanagement.
But I bet those OBA supporters who actually do receive the money, won’t be turning it back!
Your argument has no basis in reality.
Without knowing how much the 10% increase will cost the taxpayer it does not matter whether there is a projected budget surplus.
And your argument studiously ignores the BILLIONS of dollars in unfunded pension liabilities.
Of course they know how much it will cost.
And of course, the underfunded pensions are an issue but does that mean that current seniors should not get additional pension increases where possible?
“does that mean that current seniors should not get additional pension increases where possible”
The 10% pension increase is for retired civil servants, not for all seniors. And their pension is already based on their final salary, not on any contributions to the Superannuation Fund.
I wish the PLP Government would increase Social Insurance pensions by 3 times the rate of inflation.
imagine that and guess who retires in October …guess he wanted a few more dollars when he retires
You cant make this Sh*t up
in your face
Only government is written. It is not clear which country’s government. Hence confusing news. Please elaborate!
It is the Government that introduced legislation to “provide a 10% increase in pensions for public sector retirees”. The PLP Government in Bermuda.
There is nothing confusing about it.
At least one group is getting a raise more inline with inflation. Any surprises at who it is and who will be paying for it?
Election coming up shortly. They need more than a tea party for CS retirees to assure who they will vote for.
Where is this speculation about an election coming up soon coming from? There was an election last year. There doesn’t have to be one until 2030.
“a raise more inline with inflation”
Retail price inflation is reported to be less than 3% in Bermuda, and has been for several years.
For the last 5 years or more the rate of retail price inflation in Bermuda is reported to be lower than that of the U.S., the U.K., and Canada. Some may think that an economic impossibility, but that is what our Premier and Finance Minister has reported publicly.
The pay rise is not “more inline with inflation”, it is more than 3 times the current reported rate of inflation.
Yes to all of those who have alluded to it, this is a political ploy that the PLP have frequently used. They will increase the pension payments right around the time they are looking for votes. For those who don’t know the PLP will have an internal election for the new party leader when Burt steps down in October. Also many of the voters within their party are seniors so they rely on their support and influence on younger voters.
The other sad truth is that the increases are not sustainable because the government is not balancing the books. I have said this before, the employees have to pay into the pension fund by law. Also by law the employees can not withdraw any funds from their pension fund unless it is considered financial hardship and even then they are limited to making such a withdrawal twice in their lifetime. I am not sure if there is a cap on how much they can withdraw in a financial hardship scenario. Also the government keeps records of everything contributed to each individuals fund yet the payouts are not correlated with their individual contributions but rather based upon the final salary of the government employee. That means that more often than not retirees are recipients of more than what they have put in. This leads to a relatively rapid depletion of the fund. They then rely heavily on the young employees contributing to slow down the depletion. Yet they flaunt a surplus from the corporate income tax.
It is my view that at anytime the government increases the pension payouts they must pay those monies into the fund directly. Yes they have setup a superannuation offset payment to all government employees but it still doesn’t make sense because the offset only covers the current employees deficit and doesn’t address the real issue which is the deficit created by higher payouts.
Truth be told it is in our best interests that Curtis Dickinson is elected as the new party leader and premier of Bermuda. This is because he has a very strong background in banking and the morals to go with that. He truly has the best interests of the country at heart. Should Jason Hayward get in power the island will spiral quickly as he believes that the ridiculously low minimum wage is acceptable. Moreover he has included gratuities in the minimum wage, that means the people who depended on the gratuities to make up the difference and stay afloat are now struggling even more than before. Those people are our hospitality workers the lifeblood of a pillar of our economy. If we lose our hospitality workers we will lose our economic foundation that has kept the country afloat for generations.
Unfortunately as the general public we have no say in who will be the next PLP leader and so I suggest to all who are concerned to prepare for the worst and hope for the best!
Who is considered public sector workers?
Several valid questions by comments so far.
Just like to note that I retired 19 years ago. After the annual increase in health insurance my monthly net has decreased by over $300.00. The 10% increase will not cover it.