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New pension rule to take effect next month, Hsieh says

The new rule on pension benefits for civil servants, teachers and military personnel, which was announced by the Examination Yuan last week, will take effect on Dec. 16, Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) said yesterday.

"We have been working on this [new rule] for a long time and have finally completed it. The new regulation will become effective on Dec. 16, and all civil servants, teachers and military personnel will have to abide by it," Hsieh said.

The premier made the announcement during the weekly Cabinet meeting.

The new rule was finalized and introduced by the Examination Yuan on Nov. 10, and applies to civil servants, teachers and military personnel with a service record of 25 years or more.

Those who retire after 25 years will earn a monthly pension amounting to 85 percent of their monthly paycheck. One percentage point will be added for those who retire after between 25 and 35 years, while people retiring after more than 35 years will receive 95 percent of their monthly paycheck.

The premier also announced that holding a position in the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) during the period in which the KMT ruled the country would not be regarded as being employed in the civil service.

Although many high-ranking KMT officials currently enjoy significant pension benefits, they might not qualify for the new program based on the length of their actual civil service record.

"We will ask the KMT or the officials concerned to return the money that does not belong to them," Hsieh said.

His comment was made in response to a complaint that pension benefits enjoyed by former KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰), Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) and KMT Vice Chairman Kuan Chong (關中) were based on the time they had spent as KMT officials plus the length of their government-service record.

Kuan said yesterday that he would definitely return the money which does not belong to him as soon as the details have been worked out.

The KMT vice chairman said that he had just supplied the required details and that the length of his certified service record had been determined by government officials.

"The government's personnel department calculated the length of our civil service. They decided what to combine or not, not me," Kuan said.

The KMT's bottom line is to cooperate with the government instead of fighting against it; consequently all retired KMT officials will follow the Examination Yuan's new pension rule, Kuan said.

"I sincerely hope that the Democratic Progressive Party is not taking advantage of this issue as a token gesture before the elections," he said.
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