Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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463. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if 70 years-of-age is the compulsory retirement age if a person entered secondary school teaching before 2004; there is no compulsory retirement age, in cases in which a person entered between 2004 and 2013; and if is 70 years-of-age again if a person entered after 2013. [56313/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Compulsory retirement in the public service is generally determined by the date of recruitment of the individual public servant and, for the most part, is provided for in primary legislation.

I can confirm that compulsory retirement ages are, in general, as stated by the Deputy.

However, it should be noted that the compulsory retirement age for those who commenced teaching before 2004 is the end of the academic year in which they reach age 70.

The Secondary, Community and Comprehensive School Teachers Pension Scheme provides a different compulsory retirement age for a subset of secondary teachers who are in continuous employment from a date prior to 1 September 2001 and who were born in the month of August. In this case, the teacher would be due to retire on a compulsory basis at the end of the academic year in which they reach age 71.

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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464. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason there is a compulsory retirement age for teachers who entered after 2013 but not for those who entered between 2004 and 2013; and the reason there is a compulsory retirement age even if a teacher is medically fit to teach. [56314/23]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Compulsory retirement in the public service is generally determined by the date of recruitment of the individual public servant and, for the most part, is provided for in primary legislation.

The Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2004 introduced new superannuation and retirement provisions for new entrants to the public service, appointed on or after 1 April 2004. New entrants recruited or employed after 1 April 2004 (and up to 31 December 2012) have no mandatory retirement age.

Public servants recruited since 1 January 2013 have a mandatory retirement age of 70. In setting this mandatory retirement age, consideration was given to the benefits of having a specific age limit and a retirement horizon. A defined retirement age is important for planning of recruitment and promotion throughout the public service.

Further to this, the Public Service Superannuation (Age of Retirement) Act 2018 was enacted on 26 December 2018. Under this Act, any relevant public servant (recruited prior to 1 April 2004) who had not already reached their compulsory retirement age of 65 before that date has a new compulsory retirement age of 70. This is the same mandatory retirement age as is applicable to members of the Single Public Service Pension Scheme.

Where a compulsory retirement age exists for pension scheme members, they are not precluded from returning to teach in a non pensionable capacity after their compulsory retirement date.