The issue of pension reform and the bill that has been submitted to Parliament is a concern for everyone, across all professional sectors. One of these sectors, the police force—and the unique challenges it faces—were highlighted during the “Alpha Summer” program by the President of the Police Branch of the Pan-Cyprian Trade Union ISOTITA, Nikos Loizidis.
As Mr. Loizidis explained, police officers retire at the rank of Sergeant at age 62, and from the rank of Deputy Sergeant up to Chief at age 63. That is when they begin receiving their occupational pension. However, as he explained, police officers—just like military personnel who retire at 57 —even though the state requires them to retire at 62 and 63 for professional reasons—is also subject to a 12% tax on their Social Security pension.
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Mr. Loizidis described this as an “injustice,” since early retirement before age 65 is not a choice but a requirement imposed by the state itself.
Referring to the relevant bill on pension reform that has been submitted to Parliament, he said that, as it stands, there is no exception or provision for law enforcement agencies, even though they had provided written notice. This is “tragic,” he emphasized, adding that “there is not even an exception in the voluntary retirement plan” that the Union had requested for the security forces. “We have already submitted a relevant study on the annual voluntary retirement plan,” so that people who have served 30 or 40 years on shifts can leave the civil service, thereby revitalizing the civil service with new police officers, greater productivity, and greater efficiency, he noted.
In the coming days, however, as Mr. Loizidis announced, ISOTITA will list the provisions in the bill that it has identified and deems “contradictory and negative.”
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