Mr. Seán O'Reilly:

I am a serving assistant governor in the Irish Prison Service. I have worked in the service for 35 years and am 55 years of age. My contract of employment states that I may retire after 30 years of service but that I must retire at the age of 60. It is unfair that at 60 I will no longer able to work as a servant of the State, despite the investment of large amounts of money by the Prison Service in developing my various skill sets, while elsewhere in the EU members of the prison services can continue to work until they are 67.

In 2005, under the proposal for organisational change in the Irish Prison Service, an annualised hours system for attendance was introduced. The aim was to eliminate the large amounts of overtime being worked by staff and to improve our work-life balance. Staff are liable to attend for a certain number of hours over and above their normal 39 hours of work per week. In my case this was set at 112 hours a year, which works out at an average of two extra hours per week. In my current role I am responsible for the human resources function for 700 staff in the west Dublin campus. As a result of my current conditions of service I must retire at 60, while a person in the Irish Prison Service headquarters carrying out a similar function may work until he or she is 65 years old. The reality is that if I wish to work beyond the age of 60 I will have to look for a job outside the service now, as the chances of getting something at age 60 will be greatly diminished. There is a provision whereby sanction can be sought from Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to extend service on grounds of public interest, which is covered in Circular 13/752.

The grounds for forcing staff, particularly at the grade of governor, to retire at 60 no longer exist due to the changes in working conditions that I referred to earlier. Staff in the headquarters of the Irish Prison Service working in a similar role can continue working until they are 67 years old. There has been no recruitment in the Prison Service for the last ten years but approximately 850 staff are eligible to retire in the next three years, which is roughly one third of the total. This will result in the loss of a substantial knowledge base. In contrast to the Garda Síochána, there is a provision in the Prison Service whereby sanction can be sought from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, but this is at the discretion of the director of the Irish Prison Service.

To sum up, when a person has reach the required service age for pension entitlement the choice should be with that person as to when he or she retires, and not with the State.