AMMAN — The central body of the Jordanian Engineers
Association (JEA) approved in an extraordinary meeting on Saturday some
amendments the association said would ensure the continuity of its retirement
fund to meet future commitments.
اضافة اعلان
The proposed amendments to the pension system took
into account the recommendations made by members of the general assembly of the
pension fund in a meeting that was held last month.
The central body recommended reconsidering a
deduction on the various pension premiums, including a 10 percent levied from
all JEA members to bolster pension money, a plan widely known as “Fund
Support”. But the central body exempted the heirs of a deceased engineer from
the 10 percent charge.
The amendments also included reducing the percentage
of the subscription fee for all pension segments, which was suggested to be
raised on every pension segment previously. It noted that the proposed
percentage for some segments was an intolerable 100-percent hike.
JEA President Ahmad Samara Al-Zoubi said that the
mandatory subscription to the pension fund “is not new” to the association. He
said the same mandatory fee was levied prior to 1987, and again in 1992–1999.
“It has always been part of the syndicate’s
regulations,” he said. He pointed out that the pension fund is mandatory in
almost all other professional associations.
Zoubi confirmed that the mandatory subscription to
the pension fund is linked to practicing the profession, meaning that any
unemployed engineer can defer payments by six months.
As for the 10 percent deducted from the retired
engineers, Zoubi said that the decision was taken to ensure the continuity of
the pension fund. “Deducting 10 percent now is meant to save the pension fund,
and guarantee it’s sustainability for the future generations,” he explained.
“As for investing the pension fund, we have many
investments, some generating 4 percent income,” he said. He noted that others
included land and real estate that “are left to assist in the future”.
But JEA members rejected the amendments on grounds
that the changes will harm the retirement fund, and possibly lead to its
dismantling, ultimately affecting engineers and their families.
JEA member Malek Amaireh told
Jordan News that the amendments were based on “random” assumptions, which “will definitely
affect the future of the association”.
One of the amendments that sparked a controversy
among JEA members is a mandatory subscription to the pension fund for all
members, including new ones joining the syndicate.
Amaireh said the move will affect the syndicate fund
linked to the pension fund “since the unemployed engineers will not be able to
subscribe to the pension fund, therefore, they will withdraw from the
association affecting the main fund.”
Biomedical Engineer Shadi Al-Said, a JEA member,
told
Jordan News that he would have preferred “if the syndicate decided
to invest in the pension fund, rather than adding a deduction to the retired engineer
and raising the suggested subscription rate”.
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