Retired public workers are not living in luxury

TOM KINDLON (Letters, January 7) should know that only a small number of retired public sector workers live in the lap of opulence.

The vast majority try to survive on half of what used to be a living wage. They used their retirement lump sums to pay off their mortgages, car loans, overdrafts, health bills and deposits on homes for their sons and daughters.

They served their country for a pittance compared to what they would have earned in the private sector.

Public servants’ pensioners get one-eightieth of their salary for every year they worked, subject to a maximum of forty eightieths.

The idea of putting a levy on pensioners defies logic. The neatest PR spin lately was to divert people’s anger away from soulless corporations and to shift the blame to public servants. If this is how we deal with economic problems, we should abandon the efforts to resuscitate Irish capitalism. I find it unacceptable to direct emotionally charged shibboleths at old people.

Michael Mernagh

Raheens

Carrigaline

Co Cork