By MUYANI SHINJABALE
IT is very regrettable that the retirement age has been mishandled by many entities, says the National Action for Quality Education in Zambia (NAQEZ).
NAQEZ Executive Director, Aaron Chansa, said an overwhelming majority of teachers in the country were opposed to retiring at 60 years and preferred 55 years.
He supported the Court of Appeal judgment of 2018 which declared that only people who got employed after 2014 would be retiring at 60 years.
Mr Chansa noted that the court stressed that anyone who was in employment before the introduction of Statutory Instrument number 63 of 2014 shall retire at 55 years.
In an interview, Mr Chansa said the retiring and replacing of teachers who had attained 55 years would create space for fresh and energetic graduates in the education system.
“Apart from preventing many teachers from upward social motilities, retiring at 60 or 65 will prevent new graduates from joining the system,” he said
He indicated that the country was at a critical stage when over 50, 000 trained teachers would not be recruited due to lack of teaching vacancies.
Mr Chansa stated that the lack of teachers in schools was affecting delivery of quality education in the country.
He, urged the Teaching Service Commission to give all teachers above 55 years six months’ notice of retirement for them to access both retirement and pension benefits, as provided for by the law.
Teachers must retire at 55 – NAQEZ
