Walk out over unfair pensions
9:18am Tuesday 18th October 2011 in Comment
I AM asking all your readers to support me and other public service workers when we take strike action on November 30. I know that it’s a big ask because the Government is doing its best to make out that our pensions are massive and unaffordable — and that is just not true.
The health and local government schemes were renegotiated only a few years ago to make sure that they were fair and sustainable.
We had to pay more then, and we now pay between six and eight per cent of our wage towards a pension and have to work longer.
Now, the Government is coming for more. The schemes are still sustainable and not a penny of the money that they take from our pay is going into the pension scheme — it is being used to pay off the deficit.
When I joined the local authority more than 28 years ago I did not have the choice to opt out of the pension scheme, this agreement only came later. Now, I am being told I will have to pay more contributions for something I was made to join in the first place without having a choice.
The Government has already changed the terms and conditions of the pension in that the 85-year rule does not now apply and this is affecting the people who have given their time to the local authority and are again being penalised.
This is also nothing more than a special tax for Local Government workers to pay for the deficit caused by the banker’s greed The Government wants to set private sector workers against those in the public sector, but the truth is everyone should have a decent pension when they retire.
That is why I am going to vote yes to strike action, which is the first time I have ever voted to strike as I used to believe that nothing would be gained from it and the public would suffer but I now feel the Government is just using local authority workers and the public to cover the deficit that has been created. We are not hearing that MPs and hierarchy are cutting back on their salaries. They will retire with their fat cat pensions.
Christine Hadfield Bolton Council
