The Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy, has welcomed the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Mr Mícheál Martin’s announcement that mandatory retirement ages for all officers and enlisted personnel serving in the Defence Forces will be increased to 60 years of age
The Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy, has welcomed the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Mr Mícheál Martin’s announcement that mandatory retirement ages for all officers and enlisted personnel serving in the Defence Forces will be increased to 60 years of age, with the maximum age of recruitment increasing to 39 years of age. The Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Seán Clancy stated:
“I am delighted at today’s announcement that will increase mandatory retirement ages for all officers and enlisted personnel serving in the Defence Forces, to 60 years of age. The women and men of Óglaigh na hÉireann are our organisation’s greatest asset and central to everything we do. This is why the increase of mandatory retirement ages for all ranks and the security of tenure it provides, has been an absolute priority for me as Chief of Staff and for the wider Defence Forces Board.”
This is the first increase in mandatory retirement ages for Defence Forces personnel since 1963 and better reflects the increase in healthy life expectancy we are all experiencing. The increase is also broadly in line with increases that have been implemented in other western military organisations. This measure will allow experienced and skilled personnel to remain in their positions for longer, facilitating higher average career earnings and providing security of tenure for all members of Óglaigh na hÉireann.
The Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Seán Clancy further stated::
“I would like to thank an Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Mr Mícheál Martin TD for his strong support for this initiative, as well as that of the Secretary General and members of the Department of Defence. Most importantly I would like to thank my own team in the Defence Forces, for their work on this key retention and recruitment measure.”
This increase in mandatory retirement age follows in quick succession to a number of other recent retention and recruitment measures including private healthcare for all ranks, an increase in patrol duty allowance for the Naval Service and an increase in military service allowance for new entrants. The Defence Forces have also increased the levels of funding in training, education and development of personnel with over 550 of our members this year alone receiving academic awards or trade qualifications from our third level academic partners. In addition, and to bring a better work / life balance to our members, the Defence Forces has recently initiated a pilot programme aimed at implementing the provisions of the Work Time Directive.
