A strike by public sector workers over increases to their pension contributions is set to go ahead this autumn.
On the last day (14 September) of the annual conference of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), union leaders agreed to start striking on 30 November if the government failed to negotiate on the changes to public sector pensions.
Unions GMB, Unison and Unite all gave formal notice of ballot action. Several others, including the Fire Brigades Union, the National Association of Schoolmasters/Union of Women Teachers (NASUWT), and the senior civil service union FDA, also indicated that they would be balloting.
Addressing delegates at the conference Brendan Barber, general secretary at TUC, said: “The TUC and unions are committed to continuing the talks with the government, and with the relevant employers in each of the separate major public service pension schemes, but the government is urged to bring new proposals to the table urgently to make progress possible.
“Today’s meeting also agreed, however, given the failure of the government to engage properly in the negotiations, to step up the campaign and to hold a first day of action on Wednesday 30 November.”
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Someone needs to head up a white board for our pampered public servants to show them that if they pay £300 monthly into a pension for 30 years and retire at 60 thenthe pension pot will be around 100K. They will then be claiming a final salary pension for approx 25 years at circa 15k annually, a total of approx 375k. Investment will not make up the shortfall of 275k, the taxpayer does.In effect their salary has been doubled.They need to understand that they cannot expect anymore pension than they put in. Don’t credit them with intelligence, write it down so they can understand.
Thank you for your previous comment- Not a problem for public service employees new to any scheme, its the persons that signed contracts in the last 30 years! I believe a contract is a contract- if you cant trust the Goverment of the country- who can you trust!! Increses in contributions and lengths of service are just to put money back into the country, not an increase to the individuals pension pots which they are furter funding for no benefit. As a thought, if you have a pension in the private sector and are a 40% tax payer do you not get tax relief on your contributions? thus every £100 going into your pots gets the relief meaning the individual pays £60… Is that not the tax payer ‘Funding’ the pension?!!