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    • Pension age increase must be stopped, says Men’s Sheds Association

    The Association said that many members and their families are impacted by the current pension gap and planned increases

    The Irish Men’s Sheds Association, the representative body for men’s sheds in Ireland, has today announced its support for the ‘STOP67 campaign, which seeks to stop the pension age increase from 66 to 67.

    The pension age was increased from 65 to 66 in 2014, and is due to be increased to 67 next year and to 68 in 2028. However, most workers are forced to retire at 65, resulting in an income gap that is set to further widen in the coming years, leaving many people financially crippled.

    In announcing the Association’s support for the campaign, CEO Barry Sheridan said;

    “The Irish Men’s Sheds Association is fully behind the STOP67 campaign and hope that political parties take note of the undue stress and trauma the debate around the pension age is having on many families in Ireland.

    “Many of our shed members are greatly impacted by the current pension gap, with the potential to leave many men and their families across Ireland in financial difficulty.

    “It is our hope that a solution is found urgently and is one that does not leave people without their pension, of which they have worked long and hard for.”

    -ENDS-

    For more information, please contact:

    Andrew Rooney
    Communications Administrator
    M: 086 022 4535

    Email: andrew@menssheds.ie
    Website: www.menssheds.ie
    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/irishmensshedsassociation
    Twitter: @IrishSheds

    Notes to the Editor;

    STOP67 Campaign demands;

    STEP 1

    The priority is to stop the pension age from rising. The second demand is that a stakeholder forum be established to achieve a consensus around new and progressive policies – including the pension age.

    STEP 2

    The second demand is that a stakeholder forum be established to achieve a consensus around new and progressive policies – including the pension age.

    STEP 3

    In the Forum SIPTU will argue for not only the restoration of the Transition Pension, but a new flexible pension age regime that would allow people, after a lifetime of contributions, to access their pension early; and to continue working beyond the pension age without discrimination if that is what they want.

    STEP 4

    The pension system should work for people, not the other way around.

     

    About the Irish Men’s Sheds Association

    The Irish Men’s Sheds Association (IMSA) is a member-based organisation and registered charity, having been founded in 2011. The organisation aims to support the development of men’s sheds throughout Ireland and acts as a representative body to carry the message and ethos of men’s sheds onto the national stage.

    There are over 450 men’s sheds across the whole of Ireland, with over 10,000 men attending a shed every week.

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