Get away from my pension.

[Guest sibon]

I started work in 1986, in the middle of Maggie's attack on the public services. Since then, I've served the people of Sheffield rather well, I think. Many of my students have gone on to become Doctors, Dentists, Engineers, Architects... that sort of thing.

 

Throughout that time, I have always paid into my pension fund. 6% of my wages, since you ask. My employer has paid in 9% at the same time... that makes 15% in total. Year on year, even when times were tough and I really needed the money for other things. It was the right thing to do.

 

Mr Clegg seems to think that my pension is a moveable feast. According to todays papers, he is claiming that my pension should be up for review, because we can't afford it. We can afford moat cleaning, duck houses and Trident. We can bail out failed banks, who then make a huge profit as the dead cats bounce. We can't afford to honour a contract struck between a relatively poorly paid public employee and the state.

 

So, am I selfish to expect the state to honour the terms of my pension, or is Mr Clegg right, am I a burden upon society?

[Alien]

Give it away before they take it...that'll show em.

[Darth Vader]

Mr Clegg and Mr Cameron are wrong, very wrong. They are taking from the less well off to keep the rich in their luxuries. The whole thing stinks.

[convert]

I know some folks who have just been told by their employers that they will have to increase their own pension contributions by 3%. To a man they all think that this is better than losing their final salary pensions in the current climate.

 

It's time for the public sector to wake up and smell the coffee.

[Rupert_Baehr]

Well, the other part of the Dick Camel-Egg duo said earlier that he would make sure that the cuts didn't hurt those least able to bear them.

 

Reducing pensions is an obvious 'good idea' then, isn't it? - After all, it's not as if pensioners are on a fixed income, is it? - And they've got plenty of time on their hands so they can go out and get a job.

[Darth Vader]

I know some folks who have just been told by their employers that they will have to increase their own pension contributions by 3%. To a man they all think that this is better than losing their final salary pensions in the current climate.

 

It's time for the public sector to wake up and smell the coffee.

 

Why the bitterness towards public sector workers, who do a fantastic job for little in return? There is enough for everyone in this country, it's just that our government prefer to let the most lie in the hands of the few, because they belong to the 'few'. This is why British workers are at the bottom of the pile, instead of all supporting each other, like they do in France, they bicker and are full of bitterness and are divided, so they are easy pickings for treacherous governments such as this.

[Anna B]

I think the people of this country should beware of this 'divide and conquer' attitude being whipped up by a largely right wing media, (Murdoch and his cronies.)

It is being used to divert attention away from from where the big money is really being hoarded.

 

It only takes a bit of judicious digging on the internet to discover all manner of schemes and scandals that never get into the regular media.

 

As someone else has said on another thread, this Government is the first to have to run alongside an active internet with its relative freedom of information.

We should use it to challenge received orthodoxy, and question what we are being told, and realise how we are being manipulated.

 

Let's face it, for example, the expenses scandal hasn't gone away (and look how hard they tried to cover that up,) and we haven't even started looking into the European Parliament expenses - does anybody think we're getting value for money?

[Ms Macbeth]

So many people in private industry have either lost, or seen their pensions reduced to very little due to a change in policy in the late 90s by the last government. Public sector pensions don't pay for themselves, and police pensions are considered especially unsustainable: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/apr/04/police-pensions-budget-20bn

 

How can it be fair, when the state pension age is rising to 68, that police officers can retire at in their early 50's with a full pension? It costs around 20% of the police budget. Its more generous than any other public service scheme, but even those don't pay for themselves. For a start, we're living so much longer the pot just won't last!

 

The last government targeted private schemes, such as the one my son was in (I have a daughter who works in the public sector, so I take a balanced veiw). My son works in banking (where all the money is supposedly ) and he had his final salary scheme frozen about 2 years ago, and the current scheme is based on how much is paid in. I don't advocate anyone losing their pensions, and would hope that no changes are made that will affect people who are nearing retirement.

 

The fact that public service is also now generally better paid than most private sector jobs is another reason why at least those on higher incomes should be paying more proportionately. http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/pensions/article.html?in_article_id=415950&in_page_id=6

[taxman]

I started work in 1986, in the middle of Maggie's attack on the public services. Since then, I've served the people of Sheffield rather well, I think. Many of my students have gone on to become Doctors, Dentists, Engineers, Architects... that sort of thing.

 

Throughout that time, I have always paid into my pension fund. 6% of my wages, since you ask. My employer has paid in 9% at the same time... that makes 15% in total. Year on year, even when times were tough and I really needed the money for other things. It was the right thing to do.

 

Mr Clegg seems to think that my pension is a moveable feast. According to todays papers, he is claiming that my pension should be up for review, because we can't afford it. We can afford moat cleaning, duck houses and Trident. We can bail out failed banks, who then make a huge profit as the dead cats bounce. We can't afford to honour a contract struck between a relatively poorly paid public employee and the state.

 

So, am I selfish to expect the state to honour the terms of my pension, or is Mr Clegg right, am I a burden upon society?

 

You should just be happy to have a job! Stop sniveling, buckle down and tighten your belt. Maybe only go on 3 foreign holidays this year instead of 4, put some jumpers on in Winter to keep warm and just remember that some people are a lot worse off than you!

 

Old lady struggles to make ends meet

[boyfriday]

I started work in 1986, in the middle of Maggie's attack on the public services. Since then, I've served the people of Sheffield rather well, I think. Many of my students have gone on to become Doctors, Dentists, Engineers, Architects... that sort of thing.

 

Throughout that time, I have always paid into my pension fund. 6% of my wages, since you ask. My employer has paid in 9% at the same time... that makes 15% in total. Year on year, even when times were tough and I really needed the money for other things. It was the right thing to do.

 

The major problem with public sector pension funds is the open ended funding requirement of defined benefit schemes. You say your employer pays 9% of your salary, if it were fixed at that level it would probably be manageable, but it isn't and to be honest I'd be surprised if it were that low in order to provide the benefits it needs to, although I know some public service employers are finally placing a cap on their maximum contributions.

 

Final salary pension schemes are prohibitively expensive because the employer is having to provide a guarantee of pension benefits based on income and time served. By removing the guarantee element, the schemes become more affordable.

 

You say that you paid 9% year in year out, even when times were tough? Well I and may others have done the same but into defined contribution schemes, and I've seen the real value of my pension fund fall by about 20% in recent years (with no input or guarantee from an employer either).

 

Your fund and contributions paid and accumulated to date, are ring fenced against the vagaries of investment performance, prevailing interest rates and inflation..I'd say you'd done pretty well so far sibon!