The Tribune

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

WORKERS who have paid into National Insurance for 40 years or more should be able to retire before 65 with little or no cut to their retirement benefit, Human Rights Bahamas has said.

Under the current system, the full retirement benefit is paid from age 65. Qualifying workers can claim from age 60, but at a reduced rate, and once they do, the reduction remains in place for life.

HRB’s Labour Division is urging the government and the National Insurance Board to consider a contribution-based retirement option that would give greater weight to people who started work young and have paid in for decades. Minister of Labour and Public Service Pia Glover Rolle did not respond to requests for comment yesterday.

Nedra Adderley, chairwoman of labour for Human Rights Bahamas, questioned whether someone who had already contributed to NIB for 40 years should face a permanent reduction simply because they had not yet turned 65.

"This proposal is not asking the government to provide benefits to people who have not contributed," the organisation said in a statement. "It is asking the country to recognise decades of work, contributions and sacrifice."

The organisation proposed allowing workers who reach 60 with at least 35 years of contributions to qualify for an enhanced retirement benefit. It also proposed that people with 40 years or more of contributions receive an unreduced or substantially less-reduced benefit.

Another option, it said, would be a formula that weighs a worker's age, years of contributions and contribution history together.

It gave the example of a person who starts work at 16 and stays continuously employed. By age 60, that person could have spent about 44 years in the workforce. Someone who starts at 18 could have worked for about 42 years.

The organisation pointed to physically demanding jobs in hospitality, construction, sanitation, healthcare and transport. It said people who entered those industries young may be dealing with injuries, physical wear and a reduced ability to do their jobs by the time they reach 60. However, they may be unable to afford to retire if it means accepting a permanently reduced benefit.

NIB already considers the number of contributions paid or credited, along with a person's average insured income, when calculating retirement benefits. Human Rights Bahamas' proposal would go further, using long contribution histories as grounds to reduce or even remove the penalty for claiming before 65.

The organisation acknowledged that any changes would need actuarial study to determine their effect on NIB's long-term finances.

"Any reform must, of course, be actuarially studied to protect the long-term sustainability of NIB," the organisation said. "However, financial sustainability and fairness to contributors should not be treated as competing principles. Both must form part of responsible social-security reform."

It called on the government, the minister responsible for NIB and the board to formally examine such a system as part of future reforms. It also called for trade unions, employers, workers, retirees, actuaries and civil society organisations to take part in discussions on the proposal.