Introductory note. Benefits payable on separation from service include mainly so-called "separation payments", i.e. repatriation grant, commutation of accrued annual leave, death grant and termination indemnities under rules set by the General Assembly, in particular, decision 36/459 of 1981 and resolution 39/69 of 1984. The term "separation payments" has been used by the General Assembly since 1981. Earlier decisions make reference to "terminal payments" (e.g. resolution 31/141 of 1976).

Later sections cover respectively repatriation grant (section 5.2), death grant (section 5.3), and termination indemnities (section 5.4). Other benefits payable on separation from service are dealt with in section 5.5. Section 5.6 recalls the existence of the "service benefit", which ceased to exist as of 1 January 1964. The commutation of accrued annual leave is explained in section 3.4, paras. (8)(c) and (18).

Determination of level of separation payments

(1)     A new scale of pensionable remuneration became applicable on 1 January 1981, with its own adjustment mechanism. At the end of 1981, the General Assembly specified that the determination of separation payments would remain the same as prior to 1981, i.e. gross salary plus WAPA less staff assessment (decision 36/459).

(2)     That decision was confirmed by General Assembly resolution 39/69 of 1984.

(3)     By letter of 2 April 1986, the Chairman of the Commission requested from the Secretary-General the views of ACC concerning a change in the scale of separation payments, due to an increase in WAPA. The question was referred to CCAQ for study. ACC agreed on the text of a reply, prepared by CCAQ, dated 27 June 1986. (CCAQ/PER/65/CRP.4/Rev.2 or ICSC/24/CRP.14).

(4)     The increase of 5 per cent, effective 1 April 1986, was promulgated by the Chairman of the Commission (letter addressed to Executive Heads on 18 July 1986).

(5)     At its 24th session (July 1986) the Commission reviewed the computation of WAPA (ACC/1986/10, paras. 93-96 and A/41/30, para. 113). The effect of the freeze of post adjustment at the base city and in other duty stations was taken into account on the occasion of the establishment of a new base on 1 January 1986; on that date, the WAPA index, based on the new calculation, was 93.5. The Commission agreed that the next upward adjustment would take place when the index reached 105.

(6)     At its 65th session (July 1986) CCAQ agreed that the introduction of revised rates of staff assessment should not result in an increase of the net separation payments. It agreed to the establishment of a new scale of gross separation payments, based on the reverse application of staff assessment to the existing scale of net separation payments (ACC/1986/10, para. 97). This scale was approved by the General Assembly, effective 1 April 1987 (resolution 41/207, II, 2 and A/41/30, Annex XI).

(7)     On basis of its comprehensive review in 1989 of the conditions of service of staff in the Professional and higher categories, ICSC recommended that the existing scale of separation payments be abolished and that all such payments other than the commutation of unused annual leave be calculated using the base/floor amount (A/44/30, vol. II, paras. 73(g), 449-452 and 453(g)). A majority in CCAQ had supported that approach (71st session, July-August 1989: ACC/1989/14, paras. 91 and 92). The General Assembly endorsed the recommendation, with the proviso that, to avoid financial implications, the measure not be implemented until the scale of separation payments reached the level of or exceeded the base/floor scale (resolution 44/198).

(8)     At its 72nd session (February-March 1990: ACC/1990/4, paras. 81-82) CCAQ decided to bring to the attention of ICSC the need to find a way to avoid reductions in separation payments from 1 July 1990, resulting from the fact that a new scale that would come into effect in April under the existing methodology would in most cases be higher than the base/floor scale approved by the General Assembly in resolution 44/198 (see (7) above). At its 73rd session (July 1990: ACC/1990/10, para. 119), in response to the wishes of several organizations, it agreed to administrative arrangements affecting the scale of separation payments to staff at the top of their grade at 30 June 1990 who would be separating before the base/floor scale overtook the separation payments scale.