The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions says it will oppose intentions by government to amend the Pensions scheme to do away with lump sum pension pay outs for pensioners.
Under the proposed new Pensions scheme, government wants to do away stop lump sum payments for retirees opting to introduce piece meal monthly payments.
ZCTU President Leonard Hikaumba told Journalists in Lusaka that the labour movement in Zambia will not agree to the changes.
“Government should immediately halt this process especially that we have not been consulted. We have information that government wants to start paying piecemeal payments at a particular rate, we don’t even know how government has arrived at that rate,” Mr. Hikaumba said.
Mr. Hikaumba said pensioners always look forward to receiving a lump sum payment as a token of appreciation for their long service and a way of guaranteeing their future.
He said ZCTU wants government to maintain the lump sum pay outs as they go a long way in assisting pensioners adjust to a life without their jobs.
Mr. Hikaumba also demanded that workers retirement benefits from schemes such as NAPSA should also be paid as a lump sum as opposed to the current system.
“As ZCTU, we believe that government has a responsibility to source and secure resources for sustaining an effective pension scheme,” he said.
Waiyasa nondo muliso mulombwna- we are behind you mudala
Am just wondering!! why is everyone finding something to oppose PF? LAZ, FODEP, That churhes association, Catholic churh, even people within PF are wishing him(Sata) dead… and now ZCTU.. there must be surely something very wrong with Sata style of leadership!! who are Sata`s advisors kansi?
THIS MEANS SOME OF YOU WILL CONTINUE GETTING 5,000 KWACHA FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE THAN RECEIVING KA LUMPSUM K200,000 WHICH CAN FINISH IN TWO MONTHS AND CONTINUE GETTING KA K120 FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. CANT YOUSEE THIS MAKES SENCE. YOU JUST LIKE OPPOSING VERYTHING WITH OUT PROPER REASONING.
the union ought to have analysed govt’s proposition b4 reacting.it seems we’re running out of issues to oppose.our pension scheme has many flaws and efforts for its reform deserve some fair hearing instead of random criticsm.or at least offer some options.there ‘re many who wouldnt mind with piecemeal receipts if they were enough to enabl them get mortgages than wait for a lumpsum til they’re 65, and that with a long drawn out gamble between life and death
Government simply doesn’t have money to pay-out. It’s unacceptable and this amendment should not be condoned.
Government’s intention of increasing retirement age and change in pension payment plan, has nothing to do with the love for you but because NAPSA doesn’t have enough money, there ideal is to buy another 10 years by which time they won’t be there. Simply won’t work.
I totally agree with the union to be consulted but doing away with paying a lapsum of money I totally support. It’s been proven practise inclusing SA paying the whole sum make people broke and irresposible contributing to social grant system huge budget which is meant for they that have jobs or cannot be absobed in employment system. People need stead income even after retirement as very few opt for other investment….just my opinion
How someone spend his retire package is none of your Business my friend.
True Ba Zulu but we have to be realistic about this if we care enough for our national(People) as we claim to be us who claim to have some education we should know that if two people given one million each one is educated and the other is not reality is that the one with education well still maintain or manage a good life while the other might just be as worse than before hence we want educated people to run our country whcih is just common sense not that they are better that the others. So i was looking at it from that point….as we all care I assume
I’m 100% behind the union on this one.Way to go Hikaumba.Keep up with the good work.
@Sauliso,
Even when you have nothing to say, you have to show up on every page. You lied you were a researcher. You can’t be when you spend all your time blogging. Do some soul searching and get real. Stop being what you are not.
Hahahahahahaha iyo wamukonka boss yaba…..keep up the checks and balance
@Nostradamus ….get a life bro.
@Nostradamus….looks like your Saulosi thing has become an obsession.Keep on following me like on twitter.I’m sure you lead a very lonely existence.Get a life bro.
Saulosi and Nostradamus uhmmmm i like you stupid guys..!!!
U are very right bro.The big Q is why do there pay themselves lump sum after serving 5 years in parlament
Yes oppose government. PF has no direction. They have no agenda for this country. What a mess!
I agree with the UNION, paying in peacemeal will result in pensioners not doing anything valuable as the money will have been finished even b4 they ‘re aware. Can you buy a house in Lusaka as a retired teacher when given peacemeal
No u can’t is the answer
By definition a pension is a ‘ regular payment made during a person’s retirement from an investment fund to which that person or their employer has contributed…. A pension is a life annuity receivable upon retirent. Therefore, any payment that is payable after retirement on lump sum basis does not fall within the definition of pension.
Does the Labour Movement understand what they are talking about or they just want to be heard or oppose for the sake of publicity?
Mr Hikaumba, would you want to explain to the nation,in your own words, what a pension is ?
Well said mwana
@ maano, you are the opposed of your name. what is talked about is ‘lump sum’ and not pension. retirees are still getting monthly pension which comes irregular. if a worker was working for grz the only money they look forward to is lump sum which can be used to start something meaningful. grz should give option, those who want lump sum to get it and those who want the new ‘useless’ system should go for it. kwasila
Let it start with the President’s benefits, let him start getting piece-meal payments. And all the MPs, we will divide their gratuity into 60, equal to the months they would have served. If this is aggreable, then we can bring it to the ordinary workers
The current system(civil service) is such that monthly money is deducted from the employee as pension contribution.When u resign or die before serving 20 years, u will be refunded your contributions.Now what happens when u retire is the employer(GRZ in this case) will calculate, using factors such as number of years served, salary scale, the lump sum.U will be paid the lump sum 4 u to buy shelter, a car,animal or a piece of land.After that the GRZ now will be giving a monthly so called piecemeal allowance. Which is fine with me as a civil servant.
GEORGE Mpombo says the amount of political brouhaha unleashed in the ruling Patriotic Front is too much.
The amount of political brouhaha an old-fashioned and informal description of noisy excitement or complaints about something that has been unleashed is too much.
And Mpombo said since President Sata became head of state, he had gone kaput.
By not paying pensioners lump some is a way to guarantee them to stay in poverty forever.
First it was the approval of the 65 retirement age even before consulting the major stakeholders, the people thru their unions. Now they want to remove lumpsum. That is unacceptable! They were thinking being in government is as simple as making brouhaha in the opposition. Let them adjust quickly and start delivering on their promises. Naifwe abena Zambia umulomo too much: How cud we put a Standard 6 to be preisdent? See now how he is in league with his semi-illiterates (Grade 3-GBM)? Besides, if pensioners squander their money, when did it become a problem foe govt? They don’t run an unemployment fund.
THIS GOVERNMENT IS NOT SERIOUS
IT IS A VERY SERIOUSE GVT ONLY THAT YOU CANT UNDERSTAND THEIR POLICIES. YOU CALL THEM UN EDUCATED WHEN INFACT THEY ARE CAPABLE OF BEATING YOU IN MANY AREAS.ATASEEE!!
When a person retires from an organization where they have been contribution to pension scheme, they are basically entitled to a retirement package under the standard conditions of service for that organization and a pension package; which is supposed to be received over the remaining period of their lives. A lump sum amount is part of the pension (usually two thirds of it) which is paid at the time of exit. The problem with the lamp sum is that it eats into one’s pension, leaving them with a third. This has tended to exacerbate poverty, as all the package is chewed upfront. The idea is good in my view.
what’s wrong with this pf? this party is a true bunch of sick I.D.I.O.T.S who are lost for policy direction
Hahahahah, ZULU BANDA you have made day. Thats a very good point, how one decides to spend his/her hard earned cash is strictly NONE OF ANYONE’S BUSINESS!!!!!
Lets aswell do away with mp gratuity and retirement home for president. Let them get monthly payments
On a related note, what happens to the moneys that pensioners contribute and then resign their jobs without claiming it?. Someone people must be getting rich, knowing how corrupt the system is.
But him is building a house
Thz guys’ve paralysed the budget coz of induced by-elections.This z de reason y they’ve now turned to pensions.They’ve delayed people’s packages by 5 more yrs,and they ar now talking about ‘pay slow’?Failure z now in black & white & in capital letters.
the union ought to analyse govt’s proposition b4 reacting.how do you oppose hearsay in public?it seems we ‘re running out of issues to oppose.the current pension system has many flaws and the best we can do to any efforts for its reform is to offer options instead of random critcsm.ther ‘re many who may opt for piece meal recipts if they were enough 2enabl them get a mortgage for real estate devlopmnt than wait for 65yrs for a lumpsum and a long drawn out gamble with death.
Zero Zed ULI LOFWA. ULEIKALAFYE NGATAUKWETE IFYAKUCHITA. LUMPSUM IS THE BEST WAY OF PAYING A CIVIL SERVANT WHO HAS TOILED AND ENDURED UNDER VERY DIFFICULT CONDITIONS.
give them their money all at once, it is good for planning purposes, what will they do with piece meals? Most of retirees have died without ever enjoying their pension money. Why should you subject them to such bad controls? the gvt must be sensitive with such policies. first is was retirement age now its payment mode. Why? You are the guys encouraging even Mugabe to cling to power at 90. shame
That money has been saved monthly and so it should be available as a lump sum, at least a large part of it. Imagine saving K50,000 in a bank for 20 years and when you retire and need the money, the bank can only allow you to withdraw K100 every month!
This goverment has really failed,they are broke, why impose it on people, let people have their money in lumpsum so that they can do whatever they want,how would it go if you started building a toilet for Sata first, then after a year you build maybe a kitchen just like that, would it make sense.
this is not a very bad idea. having seen how retirees suffer chasing after their cash for over 5yrs i would support this but let the goverment give the money at intervals eg every after 5yrs not monthly plz. in the private sector we get our gratuity every year and it makes sense. mind you life xpectancy is at 42yrs in zambia
PF cadres are pathetic fools for real….are u really telling us that K5000 kwacha will make a retired person do something tangible for him/herself and their families,and are u telling us that if a man dies after being in service for 55-60 years does it mean that the monthly pay stops and the family have to survive on their own.why do u like supporting policies which dont make sense.your bosses have invested already and care for nobody.
this is how the pf govt wants to use workers pensions to pay civil service salaries in September by staggering pension payments.
Government simply doesn’t have money to pay-out and wants to buy some time. It’s unacceptable and this amendment should not be condoned.
Government’s intention of increasing retirement age and change in pension payment plan, has nothing to do with the love for you but because NAPSA doesn’t have enough money, there ideal is to buy another 10 years by which time they won’t be there. Simply won’t work.
Give me my money today, I buy a farm and plot. You give small amounts, I will continue renting. Empower the fellow once and for all and concentrate on other things. Retirees must learn to manage their own money. If you don’t get it upon retirement, you may only get half of you full benefits because of the short life span for zambians. So government should give me my money now. My uncle was a simple Agricultural extension officer. He retired and got all his money. we bought him a 2 bedroomed house in Kafue and paid a chief for a piece of land. He is home and set.
VIVA ZCTU!!please we as civil servants we have made it clear even on the las labor day celebrations that WE DON’T WANT WHAT IS BEING PROPOSED!!!!please learn to listen.REASONS:
1. The life expectancy in Zambia is 50,so many will die before they start receiving the monthly pension.
2. We need to give chance to the majority of the youths without jobs to get employed if we retire at 55 years.
3. The monthly pension is not adequate for one to meet his/her own needs. Corrently,those on monthly pensions are getting K150 what can you do in that?Some people think they will be getting the same salary……no baba is so percentage of your salary.
4. Getting a lampsum will help us invest in bussiness and latter employ other youths without jobs.The fact that some civil servants missuse…
4.The fact that some civil servants misuse their pension does not mean all civil servants are the same.Remember,that is my money i worked for and there is no way you (government) as my employer can determine how i should use my money. Thats my MONEY,THAT SHOULD SINK IN YOUR HEAD!!!!!
Monthly Pension is Equal to 10% of current salary.Please analyse and make the objective comment….
If the pension is paid after an employee serves for ten years, then 20 years then I can agree because very few live to enjoy their pension, BUT not piecemeal payments after 65!
This govt sounds broke and is now scheming on how to buy time. Come next elections you’ll understand how much pain you’re causing us when you suffer the worst defeat in history. How retirees spend their money is not for you to dictate otherwise you’re very annoying.
The Government should review the pension system in consultation with the stakeholders. While lump sum is good it has its own disadvantages in the sense that some pensioners have no clue on how to invest the money and end up being destitutes in their own country.
The best would be that as a person works let them have access to loan facilities that can enable them secure themselves with basic social anemties like shelther. Then the issue of monthly payments can be resonsable . but for the most us tthe challenge is that we use the same lump sum to start life after work and it is not enough. The same lump sum has is used to put up shelter and also cater for the cravings we could never afford while in formal empolyment .