News / National
Govt refutes early retirement age claims
04 Oct 2015 at 08:21hrs | Views
THE Government has refuted claims that it has despatched auditors to all its departments to identify civil servants aged 50 and above with the view of retiring them as part of efforts to reduce the wage bill.
This comes as the Civil Service Commission has embarked on an audit of Government pensioners to clear the list of pensioners who have since died.
Last week the private media alleged that every work-station had an auditor gathering information on employees with the aim of changing the civil service retirement age to 50 years.
Responding during an oral answer to questions without notice session in the House of Assembly, Deputy Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Services, Tapiwa Matangaidze said there was no audit exercise with the aim of altering the retirement age.
"Indeed, I would want to confirm that it is not Government policy at this point to retrench employees. There is no policy on that. As we stand right now, the report that is in the newspaper going to the effect that there are people looking at our Government employees is not factually correct. The situation is as remains," said Matangaidze.
In an interview with Sunday News, Apex Council chairperson Mr Richard Gundane said there was now panic within the civil service sector as it was not clear why Government was collecting details including the ages.
"We are also in the dark on what really is happening. We are yet to meet so we discuss the matter but all we know is that there have been people going about looking for this information but we don't know what this information is for hence people are now speculating that it has to do with retiring some people.
"However, we will continue consulting our membership and even the Government to find out what really is happening and also plan a possible way forward," said Mr Gundane.
He said they remained hopeful that Government would not take this route, especially after the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Services, Prisca Mupfumira, assured them that no one would lose their jobs.
This comes as the Civil Service Commission has embarked on an audit of Government pensioners to clear the list of pensioners who have since died.
Last week the private media alleged that every work-station had an auditor gathering information on employees with the aim of changing the civil service retirement age to 50 years.
Responding during an oral answer to questions without notice session in the House of Assembly, Deputy Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Services, Tapiwa Matangaidze said there was no audit exercise with the aim of altering the retirement age.
In an interview with Sunday News, Apex Council chairperson Mr Richard Gundane said there was now panic within the civil service sector as it was not clear why Government was collecting details including the ages.
"We are also in the dark on what really is happening. We are yet to meet so we discuss the matter but all we know is that there have been people going about looking for this information but we don't know what this information is for hence people are now speculating that it has to do with retiring some people.
"However, we will continue consulting our membership and even the Government to find out what really is happening and also plan a possible way forward," said Mr Gundane.
He said they remained hopeful that Government would not take this route, especially after the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Services, Prisca Mupfumira, assured them that no one would lose their jobs.
Source - sundaynews
