More than 10,000 federal public servants apply for early retirement incentives

More than 10,000 federal public servants have applied for the government's early retirement incentive program, which closed July 24. As of Tuesday, 6,855 applications have been approved and only 41 rejected.

The program allows public servants to retire with an immediate pension based on years of service, without the five per cent annual penalty normally applied to early retirement. Two groups are eligible: those hired on or before December 31, 2012, who are at least 50 years old with at least two years of pensionable service and 10 years of employment; and those hired on or after January 1, 2013, who are at least 55 years old with the same service requirements.

The last possible retirement date is January 20, 2027. If a large portion of the remaining applications are approved, the early retirement program could account for roughly one-third of the government's targeted 30,000 public-service job cuts. Treasury Board said more applications are expected to be processed in coming days and weeks. Department heads are responsible for approving retirements based on their organization's budget reductions and operational needs.