Public sector pensions strike?

[Ironside]

I'd say there's more than 19.4m doing nothing Samdy, as the 3.2m contributing to a workplace pension probably make up a huge chunk of the 6.4m contributing to the personal pensions.

And you should probably account for a good percentage who are doing "other things" too...

[leefer]

But he's not as he has a private pension to look forward to, plus the amazing state pension, and S2P!

There is a lot of people who thought they had a nice private pension to look forward to...but as we know a lot of people have been let down with firms going bust etc....the state pension is like a premium bond.....you cant lose,unless you are Greek of course.
Private pensions will soon be a thing of the past i reckon.....i have a small private pension and they want me to contract back to the state....but i will cash it in at 55,well a quarter anyway and have a minimal pension with the rest....get rid as soon as possible because basicly they make up new rules about private pensions whenever they like.

My late mother in law had a lovely private pension on top of her state pension,she worked her butt off to pay in 18% every week for 25 years.........but in reality she didnt have a lot more than the fellow across the road who lived on a state pension...she passed on a few years after the pension started,fact is she could have bought another house with what she paid in!

Thats the gamble you take i suppose........she could have lived to be a hundred.

Ironside.....i take your point but what if your savings bank goes bust with fourty years of your savings in,....is it a case of tough shit?

You will always have a state pension.

[Ironside]

There is a lot of people who thought they had a nice private pension to look forward to...but as we know a lot of people have been let down with firms going bust etc....the state pension is like a premium bond.....you cant lose,unless you are Greek of course.
Private pensions will soon be a thing of the past i reckon.....i have a small private pension and they want me to contract back to the state....but i will cash it in at 55,well a quarter anyway and have a minimal pension with the rest....get rid as soon as possible because basicly they make up new rules about private pensions whenever they like.

My late mother in law had a lovely private pension on top of her state pension,she worked her butt off to pay in 18% every week for 25 years.........but in reality she didnt have a lot more than the fellow across the road who lived on a state pension...she passed on a few years after the pension started,fact is she could have bought another house with what she paid in!

Thats the gamble you take i suppose........she could have lived to be a hundred.

Ironside.....i take your point but what if your savings bank goes bust with fourty years of your savings in,....is it a case of tough shit?

You will always have a state pension.

No offence dude, what kind of person places their future in the hands of a bank? Trditional savings and investments where you just pay your money and don't worry about it are a thing of the past in my opinion.

I'm lucky and made a few quid when times were good but just working and waiting to see what happens is suicidal.

Be EDUCATED but be pro-active in managing your finances. This is something I'm passionate about the kids learning. Otherwise you end up like my parents. Worked, paid taxes all their lives, did the whole private/public pension thing, end up with fuck all.

[Simon Pieman]

I can see both sides of the argument, it's fucking horrible when you work your bollocks off and you get screwed over.

On the other hand, even with the changes, it's still a bloody good pension. I think it's a good compromise, this makes for interesting reading:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-15475716

[donkey]

I can't speak for any other public sector pension but I do know about the Teachers Pension.

Firstly, it was offered as part of a wider deal covering pay, expected hours of work, and so on.  I signed it.  No-one forced the government to offer it to me.  So all I want is the deal I was offered.  I didn't strike when they froze my pay as I could understand the need.

Secondly, teachers made changes to their pension in 2007.  Again, this was agreed as the need was made clear.

At that time the teachers pension scheme was breaking even, so with the changes it is reasonable to assume the scheme is now in credit...however the government is two years overdue in publishing the state of the pension...so we don't know.

If the government can prove thier changes are necessary then I'll think differently, until then, I'll continue to fight for my rights.  I would urge anyone to do the same (public or private sector).

[oxford_fan]

What do you do o_f?

Primary School Teacher.

Trditional savings and investments where you just pay your money and don't worry about it are a thing of the past in my opinion.

I didn't like the idea of paying into the LGPS (Local Government Pension Scheme) but everyone advised me that it would be wise. The advantage seems to be that the 6% of my wage that I contribute is bumped up by the 14% which my employer also puts into the pot.

It sounds good, but I'm only 26 and I don't like the whole insecurity of the arrangement. Though LGPS are meant to be as safe as they come. But as far as I am concerned nothing is safe from going under, and terms can always be reneged by providers ala the current fuss.

Is this kind of arrangement what you mean by "traditional savings and investments"?

[Ironside]

Hahaha sorry...It just seemed so predictable that some of the most vocal lefties, turned out to be teachers!

I don't know whether to cry or commit suicide....

[Ironside]

Is this kind of arrangement what you mean by "traditional savings and investments"?

Yes. In a roundabout sense of the phrase.

[fatbasher]

Not EVERY other cunt. Those at the top, including those forcing through these reforms, are still doing very nicely thank you.

They always have and always will, however, maybe, just maybe they have worked hard for that position. Not every fucker who is on 100k plus pa has been parachuted into that pay bracket by birthright and nepotism......

As one head teacher who is not going on strike points out. "This is the paradox about the unions: on the one hand, they’re very Left-wing and want money poured into deprived areas, but, on the other, they reject the measures that do some good for children in poor communities".

These are the fuckers that would as likely as much ignore the "women and children first" order when the ship is going down or a I prefer to say "All for one and all for me" syndrome.   

[bathford]

A h a day off to recognise the staight of the pensions for public sector works.

Or is a day day that falls on pay day for most and offers a chance to do the xmas shopping without the saturday crowds???

Not that i'm being a sinic!!!

If it mattered that much, why don't they do it in early Jan when nobody has any money??

[ghanimah]

Ironside.....i take your point but what if your savings bank goes bust with fourty years of your savings in,....is it a case of tough shit?

You will always have a state pension.

Savings are guaranteed up to a certain limit (can't remember what it is now - it used to be £50,000) so as long as you don't exceed the limit and spread your money about you should be just fine.

[Nomoreheroes]

I know we've done this before but if it's that bad get a job in the private sector and if you can't then maybe your public sector job isn't as bad as you think it is.

Sorry, too simplistic an approach. Admittedly, as with all walks of life, there are some people who are wasters and can't get another job.

But what some people forget (especially some of the younger generation who were brought up with Thatcherism) is that the attraction of some jobs isn't just the salary. Its sometimes about the fringe benefits or morals, ethics and duty. Sometimes people just want to help others, while other want to serve and protect the country. To illustrate, I know of at least one person who is entitled to quite a large salary, but doesn't draw it.

[Nomoreheroes]

A h a day off to recognise the staight of the pensions for public sector works.

Or is a day day that falls on pay day for most and offers a chance to do the xmas shopping without the saturday crowds???

Not that i'm being a sinic!!!

If it mattered that much, why don't they do it in early Jan when nobody has any money??

Cynic its cynic !

[thedarkprince]

Savings are guaranteed up to a certain limit (can't remember what it is now - it used to be £50,000) so as long as you don't exceed the limit and spread your money about you should be just fine.

It's up to £85,000 now and if you have more you could/should be splitting the amount amongst different banks (make sure they're not owned by the same parent company). 

[wiggy]

I worked in Local Government for 16 years though am now self employed.

During those 16 years I never went on strike, but if I was there I would today.

When you join a council as a teacher or a bin man, you sign a contract with that council, part of which is a mutually agreed pension arrangement. What is happening today is that a 3rd party who is not part of that contract is forcing a change to the arrangements. This change is being forced through regardless of the fact that not all local authority pension schemes are in the same amount of deficit.

If the Government and employers had approached this differently I am sure there wouldn't have been a problem. They could have taken a line that all existing staff increase their contributions by a smaller amount (staff made an offer to increase payments to 7% years ago) and any new staff join the scheme on a different basis.

Lets not forget that the biggest reason for a deficit in the schemes was a Tory government giving the employers a holiday from paying in the employer contributions back in the days of Leon Britten.