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The Beat

Q: What’s happening with the Contingent More updates:
Loan? • Public Holiday Compensation
A: The amount of forty million dollars ($40M) is $90,000 as one off payment December, 2020.
to be provided as a one-off grant for the estab- The amount of Thirty Thousand dollars
lishment of a contingent revolving loan facility ($30,000) nontaxable, payable in January
through the Jamaica Police Cooperative Credit 2021.
Union.
• Meal Allowance
Update: It is almost the completion of 2017-2021 $820 per occasion with effect April 1,2020
contract period and the outstanding issue of the
($40M) forty million which has now been Q. What has been happening with the
increased to ($80M) eighty million based on the changes to the Pension Act
contract continues to be outstanding. Whilst we A. Prior to 2014 under the old Pension Act,
were never satisfied at the slow pace in which this several members applied for early retirement for
specific item was dealt with, we are near to an several different reasons. They were granted
implementation. permission to proceed on retirement. Shortly
after, there was a change to the Pensions Act and
We will soon be announcing the implementation the previous permission to retire was rescinded.
date as we conclude the Terms of Reference and Members who were given the option to retire and
other modalities with our lawyers and the had migrated had to return to Jamaica with many
Ministry of Finance. It has been a long time in disruptions.This is although, they followed the
coming. process before there was a change to the Act.
They were given the option to resign, retire with-
Q. Update on the Disability & out benefits or return to work. The problem was
Dismemberment Benefit? further compounded when the affected members
A. This matter requires actuarial advice which were hampered by the time frame in which they
will be sought by the Ministry of Finance and the could appeal the decision as such an appeal
Public Service by September 2019 and will be should be done within three months.
shared with the Jamaica Police Federation upon The Federation Executive met and
receipt. subsequently engaged the services of an attorney
who made an application to the Supreme Court
Update: The Police Federation is yet to be given for the matter to be granted a waiver to be heard.
an update on this matter. We were last told at a We are pleased to that we were successful in our
meeting with the Minister of National Security application and as such the matter will be heard
that this matter is being perused and the infor- in Court on the members’ behalf.
mation will be shared shortly with us. We have Unity is strength.
written to the Ministry with a specific timeline.

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