- Conference
- 2023 National Women's Conference
- Date
- 4 October 2022
- Decision
- Carried
“This conference notes that:
The Women Against State Pension Injustice (WASPI) campaign is about the injustice suffered by 1950’s born women because of the 1995 and 2011 pensions acts. These delayed the State Pension Age by up to 6 years with little or no notice. The way in which the changes were implemented has left women financially unprepared for their later years and caused severe hardship for many of them.
WASPI women made a series of maladministration complaints to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), followed by complaints to the Independent Case Examiner (ICE), culminating in complaints to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO). This resulted in an investigation into the way that the DWP communicated the changes to women’s State Pension age.
Stage 1 of the investigation found that there had been maladministration by the DWP. The provisional findings of stage 2 of the investigation looks at whether any of the failings identified in stage 1 led to injustice and the Ombudsman is working on stage 3 which will consider what action the DWP should take to remedy the “apparent injustice”.
The Ombudsman said that these women had suffered maladministration because the DWP should have informed affected women of changes in December 2006 but delayed until April 2009.
The PHSO has no power to refund lost pensions or pay damages but can recommend that the Government gives the women compensation.
WASPI Campaign data suggests that 82,000 women died between 2010 and 2020 before reaching the new State Pension Age and before receiving compensation for the lost years.
WASPI women are now fighting for fair and fast compensation.
In 2017 UNISON pledged support for WASPI women, and in 2019 declared that it would continue to stand with WASPI and other 1950’s pension campaign groups.
Conference asks the National Women’s Committee to:
1)Reaffirm UNISON’s support of WASPI and the injustice suffered by 1950’s born women;
2. Raise awareness about the maladministration of the DWP and how it has affected 1950’s born women;
3. Support WASPI’s campaign for Fair and Fast Compensation.
ENDS”