Equal Pensions

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Conference
2014 National LGBT Conference
Date
31 July 2014
Decision
Carried

Conference notes that the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, which applies to England and Wales, required the UK government to review the differing treatment of widows, widowers, surviving same-sex spouses and surviving civil partners in occupational pension schemes. UNISON, other trades unions and the Trades Union Congress (TUC) made submissions to the review. They all called for equality among different groups of survivors based on levelling up benefits to those of widows. So far, the government has published the costs of equalising benefits but it has not said what it will do.

Conference welcomes the publicity the UNISON LGBT e-bulletin has already given to the TUC e-petition which calls for fair treatment for widowers, civil partners and same-sex spouses. It instructs the national lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) committee to continue to promote this campaign widely.

It also instructs the committee to approach, with urgency, Labour Link with a view to seeking from the Labour Party a commitment to legislate for equality.

It urges regional LGBT groups to raise the issue with Labour Link Committees and branch groups and individual members to do so locally.