Letter of the Day | Adjust pension amount according to cost of living
Published:Tuesday | November 28, 2023 | 12:05 AM
THE EDITOR, Madam:
I have just read the Mona School of Business and Management’s response to Orville Taylor’s commentary of November 12, with reference to Prof Densil William’s presentation, including, as I understand it, pension payments being a major cost item in profit and loss statements. I do not want to comment on what either had to say, but wish to share with both of them, and others, to think about and act upon.
I speak of the wasting away of the purchasing power of pensions via devaluation and inflation in Jamaica. To cut to the chase, I am flabbergasted that the people who live high off the hog representing workers, have never seen, or saw but have not recognised, the need for a cost of living adjustment (COLA) in their contract negotiations.
It would push up cost of living for everybody and that, unless you are a former prime minister, or senior civil servant who have the COLA (by another name), you will feel the pinch. But, it is time that somebody, be it the minister of labour, the trade union organiser, or one of our academics, take up the ball and run with it.
Here is an illustration of the challenges our retirees face. The Gleaner editorial of May 25, 1999, titled ‘The death of growth’, spoke of the exchange rate being between J$33 and J$38 to one US dollar. Forget about the inflation impact for a minute (as the much lesser evil) and consider that today, it takes, at the official level, J$160 to buy the same one US dollar.
For the Jamaican retirees, particularly the older ones, this means it is now costing four times as much to buy the same loaf of bread or pay the JPS bill to keep light in the house. Four times as much means that the purchasing power of their pension has been reduced to 25 per cent of what it was in 1999.
The daunting reality of this is exacerbated by the fact that, with every enumeration, more of our citizens are turning up in the age group of 65 years and older. Hence, the question must be asked AGAIN.
Who is looking out for those who gave their best years of their lives to whatever development we have seen in this country since we took over management of ourselves in 1962?
– Is it going to be our politicians?
– Our trade unionists?
– Our academicians?
– A combination of any or all of them?
Other countries who have paid attention to the welfare of their citizens have done it. We could do it, too. We just need to see and/or recognise the need.
LLOYD VERMONT SR