Parliament has passed the National Pension (Amendment) Bill, 2021. The object of the bill is to exclude the Police Service, Immigration Service, Prison Service, security and intelligence agencies and the Ghana National Fire Service from the unification pension.
The bill seeks to amend the National Pension Act, 2008 (Act 766) to exclude the security services from the pension consolidation process envisaged under section 213 of Act 766.
If approved by the President, the bill would remove security agencies from the consolidation process to pave the way for the creation of separate regimes to manage pensions in the security and intelligence sectors.
The bill was presented to Parliament and read for the first time on December 10, 2021, by the Minister of Labor and Labor Relations.
The bill was referred to the Committee on Manpower, Social Welfare and State Enterprises for consideration and report.
Observation
According to the report, the committee was informed that section (2) of section 213 of Act 766 ordered the board of the National Pension Regulatory Authority (NPRA) to ensure the unification of all pension schemes and the full operationalization of the three-tier pension scheme. for all public sector workers, excluding the Ghana Armed Forces.
The committee noted that the Ministry of Labor and Labor Relations created a joint technical committee on pension unification to develop the technical instruments needed for the unification process.
The committee, the report, noted that although officers in the Police Service, Immigration Service, National Fire Service, Prison Service, and other security and intelligence agencies face the same or similar risks as their counterparts in the Ghana Armed Forces, they are not excluded from the integration process. retired and treated equally with other public sector workers.
“The committee was informed that the effort to integrate the pension in the payment of lump-sum benefits to the first group of retirees from the security services under Tier 2 of the Three-Tier Pension Scheme in 2020 is full of many employee data verification. challenges, which stalled the entire unification process.
“As a result of the challenges that arise during the pension unification exercise and the unique nature of the security services in general, the Ministry of Labor recommends that the security agencies be excluded from the unification process to pave the way for the creation of a separate regime to manage pensions in the security and intelligence sectors,” he said. .
Lesson again
According to the report, the committee observed that the amendment will automatically reinstate the occupational pension scheme before security service under CAP 30, which is a source of inequality in pension delivery in Ghana. Therefore, they seek to reinstate the enactment and scheme which cannot be implemented under Act 766.
These are referred to as the Ghana Police Pension Act, 1985 (PNDCL 165), the Immigration Service Pension Act, 1986 (PNDCL 226), the Prison Service Pension Act, 1987 (PNDCL 168), Section 34 of the Security Agencies Act and Intelligence, 1996 (Act 526); and Section 27 of the National Fire Service Act, 2000 (Act 537).
Background
In 2004, the Presidential Commission on Pensions was established to review the existing pension schemes in Ghana and recommend a sustainable pension scheme that would ensure retirement income security for Ghanaian workers.
The formation of the commission was prompted by the agitation on the labor front about the inequality and disparity in the pension regime for public sector workers.
In the same public sector employer, some people contribute to a pension scheme while others do not.
The Commission also conducted an actuarial valuation of Pension Ordinance No. 42 of 1950 (CAP 30) pension scheme to ensure its impact on the Consolidated Fund.
An actuarial assessment conducted by the 2004 Presidential Commission on Pensions proved that CAP 30 is unsustainable, unfair, and puts great pressure on the Consolidated Fund.
The 2004 Presidential Commission on pensions, therefore, recommended that CAP 30 be abolished.
Acceptance by the government of the proposed reforms has been completed in the implementation of the National Pension Act, 2008 (Act 766), which introduced the Three-Tier Pension Scheme and established the National Pension Regulatory Authority as the main vehicle for enforcement.
The object of Act 766 is to provide pension benefits to ensure the security of retirement income for workers, ensure that each worker receives pension and related benefits when due, and establish uniform rules, regulations, and standards for pension administration. and related benefits for workers in the public and private sectors.
Subsection (2) of section 213 of Act 766 directs the NPRA board to ensure that the pension scheme in the country is incorporated in accordance with the Regulations made under the Act within four years after the commencement of the Act.
The government is expected to take steps to migrate beneficiaries from the linked public pension scheme to the Three Tier Pension Scheme with the expiry of the transition period in 2014.
However, as of January 1, 2015, the government has not implemented adequate measures to consolidate public sector pensions.
Source: graphic.com.gh
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