to not give a fig about my pension and just be grateful for having a job?

[nevergoogle]

arf at fig

public sector strikes brewing.

what do you think? what's actually going on?

It is really worrying Tbh. At a time when the government should be encouraging people to seriously think about saving for their future retirement people are seriously considering leaving public sector schemes.

What really grates with me is all the talk of gold plated pensions. Yes some people will have big pensions but when you consider the average nurse retires on 7-8 k a year it actually isn't a huge amount.

The extra amount a month (for which people will get less in their pension) will be too much for many families to absorb a month. Now I'm not an economist but even I can recognise that people will spend less in shops etc just to survive. Which will be terrible for the UK economy and our recovery.

By the time I retire I seriously doubt there will be a state pension for all too.

YANBU provided you've done the maths and understand the implications. State pension for a single person is £102/week. Pension credits (or the Universal Benefit) might top that up. If you opt out of pension options i.e. private, employer or the public sector scheme and don't have other fall-backs such as property, investments or other savings, the upshot of relying solely on the state means a pretty miserable old age.

I will lose £60 out of my pay every month. It is a PAY CUT and a tax on public sector workers. Yes, I have a well above average salary (bloody well deserved for the work I do and in no way equivalent to the same job in the private sector) but this doesn't mean I can afford it.

Bit of a thick question here, please forgive me. When you go on strike do you get paid? The reason I ask is that part of me wants to join a union, at the same time, I can't afford not to get paid. :(

No, you do not get paid. Not a daft question.

Sorry hit send too quick.

The point of joining a union is to be part of the collective, to get assistance when you have issues your employer(and many offer help with private issues too) and fund the work that they do that benefits you regardless of your membership (for example H&S in the workplace).

Christ. So you join a union to hopefully improve your situation and fight for improvement - and by doing so - you forfeit your pay. The dice seem rather unfairly loaded, don't they? :(

It is a PAY CUT and a tax on public sector workers

This - exactly.

And what exactly is the point in paying into a LA pension scheme for the next 5 years if I then leave the LA? What would I do then? I am a bit confused about all this, I've only had a pension for a year, it hit us hard losing £150 a month but I always thought it was necessary, now I'm wondering if I should have bothered :( I have had to stop saving into my personal savings account at the same time (which I had only had for a year anyway, and have now emptied ) as it was too much.

I really don't know what to do. I'm striking though can ill afford to, though I don't believe it will stop these proposals from going ahead. So what should I do with my money? After I finish training I will probably leave the LA and do agency work in order to earn back what I have spent so what happens to my LA pension then?

Your employer's contribution is part of your salary, so if you don't take the pension you are essentially not taking part of your salary. That is not to say, however, that they will give you the cash equivalent if you don't take the pension and make your own contributions.

In my scheme, if you leave in the first two years you get your money back (but not your employer's contributions) and after that you can either leave it where it is until you retire or get a transfer value to move it into a private scheme.

alpine yes it is rather isn't it? The govt gets to save millions in salaries.
Joining a union isn't about striking, it's about the strength of the collective. Withdrawal of labour is just one tool, that is used very sparingly in the UK. I mean we're hardly bloody French air traffic controllers are we?

misspiggy I'm not actually UK or public sector - these malpractices are sadly international. I am in the same quandary about the pension, do I yank my money out and potentially miss out on peanuts - and of course employer's contribution? :/ who the crap knows? I do know I've been asked to contribute more to cover the pensions of our current corporate retirees. Ponzi scheme anyone? [Sigh]

I do want my voice to be heard and the collective legal powerhouse may well prove useful long term. I just detest the hypocrisy of it all. Again, this is not just private or public sector. The entire bloody core is rotten.

Even if you don't care about your rights, you are in a UNION and therefore should do what you can to stand up for the rights of other people who might care.

Tiredemma - I'm a fellow psych nurse . I feel for you I really do .

Nobody should have to feel "grateful" they have a job. You have a contract to provide certain services for pay and benefits. Gratitude should not come into it.If an employer decides they no longer require your services they will get rid of you regardless to whether you have been grateful or not.

you know, i didnt really understand what all the fuss was about when the teachers striked earlier on in the year, i had to take a days holiday to cover childcare which peed me off a bit as i need my holiday reserve for child sickness etc.

HOWEVER, now the pensions thing is going to be effecting me I realise why they were striking and fully support them, It means I will have to pay an extra £80 a month (which I cannot afford so will have to opt out of the pension contributions), so they expect us to pay an extra 50% a month, work for longer now, and recieve 15% less than we were meant to when we retire.

I work for the NHS and we were recently given a chance of deciding which pension system we wanted, one where we could retire at 60 or another where we could retire at 65, obviously a lot of us choose the 60 option and are now bening told that are choice is going to be disregared and we will have no choice but to work till 68.
The goverment must have spent millions on paper work for each NHS employee and the wages of people who calculated what our pensions would be, and they now decide to go against our decisions, only 4 months later than when my deadline for my choice was.

Needless to say I will be striking with the rest of them in November if its not sorted out.

Yourmother- re the union . I also quit the union in addition to the pension . I involved the union when I really needed them 2 years ago ... The union had the interests of higher management at heart so they were useless . I continue to be bullied by management despite having a chronic physical illness . So I don't pay into a union and put my own families needs first .

worely I'd check the terms of your scheme about opting out. It might be worth taking advice from an IFA. Many do free consultations.

sillyoldself I'm sorry that your union didn't support your interests but that doesn't mean that it's not worth others being members of a union.

tiredemma I'm an RMN too, used to work in medium secure...I cannot believe they're taking your forensic lead from you that's

We will not be able to afford any decrease in my monthly salary, I'm so so sick of work at the moment and all this "be grateful to have a job" s**t is propanganda brainwashing which the current government have groomed us to think to effectively make us work harder for less money and worse conditions.

Realistically it will take more than the union and striking action to sort all this out .

pensions justice
this is a brilliant link so work out how the pensions change will affect not just nhs workers but teachers and civil service workers.

SO, im actually on annual leave on the 30th november anyway. will i still get paid as my annual leave was booked months ago... and wont be there to strike.... hmm

I think a final salary scheme is still worth its weight, even with increased contribs. Almost no-one in the private sector is offering final salary schemes any more because they had become far too expensive. They way money purchase pensions work, to guarantee a pension of £5k/year at 65 you have to have a fund that is worth at least £100,000 by the time you retire. For someone working for 45 years that means putting aside approximately £180/month into a private pension throughout their working life. If the value of that fund drops at or just before retirement, their pension will reduce. When the phrase 'gold plated' gets trotted out, it doesn't mean 'lavish riches'... but it does mean exceptionally good value for money and zero risk.

Im not worried about pensions as I or most people I know dont have one. Its only something I know that is worth doing if you are a publiic sector and they are the only people I kow that really both with them.

Worley - you should still get paid as you are on leave, not on strike. Whether you would have gone on strike or not is irrelevant, as your leave has been pre-booked a long time ago.

Yes Worley - if you have a legitimate reason not to be at work, ie A/L booked prior to the strike, or certified sick leave, you will get paid. I had mumps once when we were on strike - I got paid.

CogitoErgoSometimes - zero risk, really? Many of us are wondering if there will even BE a public sector pension scheme by the time we retire. Is there really anything to stop the Government just shutting it down and swallowing the proceeds? Terms and conditions of employment count for absolutely nothing so who's to say it won't happen. That's what has me wondering about whether to stay in or not.