College staff quit ahead of blitz on pensions
Friday November 20 2009
MORE than 50 senior academics are retiring from UCD this year, ahead of a clampdown on generous pension top-ups.
Some of them are getting up to 10 years added to their pensions, but in future the maximum is expected to be reduced to five.
Topping up academics' pensions has been custom and practice for decades.
The scheme was introduced on the basis that many academics spent a long time on research and post-graduate work and would not have been able to work the maximum number of years to qualify for a full pension.
It applies in other universities, and in the case of Trinity it also applies to a small number of senior administrators.
The pension funds of UCD and the other universities are due to be transferred fully to the Exchequer in the new year, which will result in them losing their power to make pension top-ups to the Finance Minister.
Guaranteed
The UCD case was raised at the Public Accounts Committee yesterday by Fianna Fail TD Darragh O'Brien who said top-ups imposed a significant cost on the taxpayer because the staff were going into a "guaranteed pension for life".
"The ongoing cost of this must run into millions from what I've seen," Mr O'Brien said. Department of Finance official Brendan Ellison confirmed that universities had been given advice that if there was any discretion in the pension top-ups, it should be utilised for the benefit for the Exchequer.
- John Walshe and Michael Brennan
Irish Independent
