"Public sector - so no"

[OhpoorMe]

Anyone else get quite frustrated seeing this on threads about Christmas parties/ bonuses / staff perks etc

The public sector isn't one homogenous organisation. I've only ever worked in PS organisations and have always had a paid for staff party, sometimes bonuses, sometimes perks etc.

It's not a given that public sector = badly treated!

Obviously they vary, I've worked in both. Generally public sector = easier/less pressure therefore less pay

Correct. Mine has been career average since 2011.

If £100k gives you £4k pa, then to get £25k you "only" need £650k ish. But personally I work on a 3% return as being a safer bet.

As to "how can anyone save that", some people can, of course. I'm 55 and have £500k in pension and over £100k in other savings.

I'd rather have a final salary pension than Christmas parties which I hate anyway, but it's not like you get a choice, it's not that simple.

I do have an old, small, FS scheme and the trustees have just changed the rules of drawing it, so they're not safe!

If £100k gives you £4k pa, then to get £25k you "only" need £650k ish. But personally I work on a 3% return as being a safer bet.

Yep that was in line with my initial calculation

As to "how can anyone save that", some people can, of course. I'm 55 and have £500k in pension and over £100k in other savings.

And that's very unusual as the average figures would demonstrate

I'd rather have a final salary pension than Christmas parties which I hate anyway, but it's not like you get a choice, it's not that simple.

Of course, but let's have a little bit of perspective any time we're talking about private sector perks like Christmas parties. They're just pretty baubles compared to what's going to add genuine value to your life.

I’m civil service and we’d never get anything like that paid for - no Christmas parties, no bonuses no gifts.

Today we had our Christmas do which was us all bringing food into the office for a little get together at the end of the day. No alcohol of course as you can’t bring it into govt buildings (except 10 Downing Street). Some went to the pub afterwards. I’ve been in CS for 6/7 years now and it’s the first time we’ve done this - usually we’d have a meal out where everyone pays for themselves but this year it’s acknowledged that people just can’t afford to do it.

I work in the Public sector, we get funded overnight Christmas party, away days, had free lunch this week, and we get an annual bonus.

We have a decent pension % contribution, but it's not final salary.

As the OP says, not all public sector is the same.

@VanGoghsDog who do you work
for?

Regarding pensions, I pay 12% of my salary. Roughly 7.2k per year. Plus tax relief that’s roughly 8.7k. So that’s 350k over 40 years. If my employer pays 8% plus the increase in value from investments, interest etc wouldn’t that give me the 600/800pot that people are talking about needing in a private pension to get 25k a year?

Regarding pensions, I pay 12% of my salary. Roughly 7.2k per year. Plus tax relief that’s roughly 8.7k

You haven't been on that salary for 40 years though have you?

If my employer pays 8%

That's virtually unheard of for a short period of time let alone 40 years. The employer I referenced paying that on did so for directors.

As the OP says, not all public sector is the same.

I don't think I said they were

So they say. I’ve never believed that for a second.

Hi Carrie 👋🏼

I don't think it's sensible for people to say who they work for on a public forum, do you?

I'm a public servant. We have to abide by the managing public money rules, and government functional standards - just as examples to show that it is the government.

I got 8% employer pension contribution when I worked for a well known high street bank just a few years ago.

I know, for example, that National Australia Bank also pays that sort of amount.

So no, 8% is not "virtually unheard of" at all.

So no, 8% is not "virtually unheard of" at all.

That probably was an overstatement. It's unusual.

Getting it for 40 years would be virtually unheard of.

It is definitely VERY unusual. My employer pays 3%. I've never had more than 4% and ive worked for about 8 different organisations over the last 30 years or ao

I've had mostly 3% in my career. I had a few years of 8% glory and I'm now on 5%, which my employer seems to think is stellar 😁

Really?! I work for a County Council. We had to organise and pay for our own staff Xmas dinner. No bonus, no party, no day off, not even a card to acknowledge the season.

Charities are a bit different - I've worked at several and whilst they didn't pay for a staff dinner due to budget, they'd have wine and cake / an office lunch and a small bonus.

This year I honestly feel as though the season's passed me by entirely. 😔

Obviously you’ve never worked in the NHS then

Or social work.

But if you stayed at an employer who pays 8% (I've highlighted two, and it's pretty common in banks) for 40 years then you'd get it for 40 years, wouldn't you?

I don't understand what you're trying to say. Are you saying it would not have been paid for the past 40 years? I mean, that's probably true because most employers I know who pay high pension contributions do so because they closed an FS scheme. I suspect the high st bank had an FS scheme in the past.

Oh, my partner's last employer paid him 12%, that was an electrical wholesaler, and that was because they took him out of the he FS scheme. He was there 23 years. I think new joiners got 5%.

But if you stayed at an employer who pays 8% (I've highlighted two, and it's pretty common in banks) for 40 years then you'd get it for 40 years, wouldn't you?

Because people tend to move around a lot in the private sector and as I and others have pointed out, it isn't usual at all.

Terms are different at different levels (literally never seen 8% at lower than director level personally), so starting on 8%, wow😵. Terms also change. The company I referenced has just been bought out by a multinational. How long will that pension last I wonder?

I'm in PS and my company doesn't put on a Christmas do we don't even go out as a team because of 'expenses'.

Politician prob, paid parties, cheaper food and bar and massive payrises! Ive worked in public sector 16 years never had bonus or paid parties. I'd be lucky to find a printer that works!

Also not sure how I would feel know tax payers money is going on public sector parties...