- Conference
- 2005 National Delegate Conference
- Date
- 28 February 2005
- Decision
- Carried as Amended
Conference condemns the attack on the public sector pension schemes and congratulates the National Executive Council on its high profile campaign to defend and improve the pensions of public service workers, including submissions and discussions with government, active participation in Trade Union Congress activities such as the lobby in November and the day of action in February, lobbying of MPs, production of campaign materials such as briefings, a campaign pack and a pensions bulletin. Conference, in particular, congratulates branches and members involved in the campaign including the threat of industrial action, against changes to the Local Government Pension Scheme. Congratulates the union on its successful campaign that forced the government to withdraw its proposals for the LGPS and give a firm commitment to negotiate any future changes to public service schemes.
Conference welcomes the revocation of the LGPS Amendment Regulations by the government prior to the general election campaign. Conference believes that this only occurred because of the vote for industrial action by UNISON members, and the threat of joint action by seven public sector unions. Conference congratulates all those who worked for this result, and urges all members and activists to prepare for action in the near future as the government has confirmed its intention to reintroduce the changes to the LGPS and other public sector pension schemes.
Following this sustained activity, which involved other unions and the TUC, the government recognised our concerns that there had been no genuine dialogue over the proposed increases in pension ages in public sector schemes. The Deputy Prime Minister took steps to revoke the Local Government Pension Scheme (Amendment No. 2) Regulations, which had been the first demonstration of their principles for change. The Secretary of State for Pensions also gave a commitment to proper negotiations on public sector pensions over the succeeding months, which include scheme specific negotiations. In a statement from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister it was confirmed that the statutory consultation reflected the government’s position that all those engaged in the delivery of public services deserve safe and secure pensions.
One of the benefits for workers in low-paid and often stressful public service jobs has been the knowledge that when they need to retire, they will be able to do so on a pension decent enough to keep them out of poverty in retirement. Public service workers have been angry that this came under threat as a result of the government’s proposals. Their agreement that all aspects of their proposals should be open to discussion and negotiation is a welcome recognition of the benefits of genuine and meaningful negotiation with the trade unions. The challenge for UNISON is to use the negotiations to secure good quality sustainable pension schemes for all our members.
Conference nevertheless believes there are certain principles which should underpin negotiations and reaffirms its opposition to increasing to 65 the age of entitlement to an unreduced pension, and to increasing the minimum age at which workers may start to receive a pension to 55. Conference believes that raising the age of entitlement to an unreduced pension will have an unacceptable impact on low paid public service workers, robbing them of dignity and security in retirement and forcing them to work well into old age. The incidence of physical and sensory impairment increases with age and disabled pensioners face additional costs. If disabled people are to work longer the need to introduce disability leave and provide more resources for the Access to Work becomes even more urgent otherwise disabled pensioners will become even more impoverished. Conference agrees its opposition to increasing to 65 the age of entitlement to an unreduced pension is not negotiable.
Conference reasserts its view that final salary pension schemes provide the most certain form of pension provision that can guarantee a decent pension for workers on low to moderate incomes. Conference notes that the alleged advantages of career average schemes remain unproven in practice, and that career average schemes have a track record of being introduced as a cost cutting measure.
Pensions are deferred pay, and should be subject to negotiation in the same way as pay. Conference welcomes the government’s move away from arbitrary imposition of changes to meaningful negotiations and believes this to be a sound basis for the future.
Conference believes that, if the government is concerned about the gap between public sector pensions and the pensions received by workers in the private sector, the solution is not to cut public sector pensions but to compel private sector employers to contribute towards decent pensions for their employees. Conference reiterates its demand that the government should introduce a policy of compulsory employer pension contributions, with employer contributions set at a minimum level of ten per cent.
Conference welcomes the additional protections introduced by the Pensions Act to ensure that members of private sector pension schemes receive the pension benefits they have been promised, such as the Pensions Protection Fund and the Financial Assistance Scheme.
Conference calls on the government to restore the link between earnings and the basic state pension, and to introduce better safeguards to prevent employers from unilaterally closing final salary pension schemes.
In addition, Conference congratulates the National Executive Council on its success in lobbying on the civil partnerships bill, as a result of which those registered under the civil partnership scheme will have a legal right to receive a survivor’s pension calculated on the basis of all scheme membership from 1988. This is however just one example of the many inequalities and discriminatory practices which exist in pension schemes, only some of which have been addressed by the government’s Pensions Commission.
Conference calls on the National Executive Council to:
a)continue the campaign to defend and improve the public sector schemes, notwithstanding the autonomy of all our service groups to determine their own pay and conditions campaigns and strategy, including negotiations on pensions, every effort should be made to ensure maximum coordination across the union and with other trade unions, particularly around the issue of industrial action;
b)continue to develop a strategy to fully integrate pensions into UNISON’s bargaining agenda;
c)campaign for the introduction of compulsory employer pension contributions, set at a minimum level of ten per cent, and for better safeguards to prevent the unilateral closure of final salary schemes;
d)campaign for regulatory changes to bring about 50 per cent electe