In September, I wrote about the East Riding of Yorkshire Council's pensions' review. Instead of enhancing pensions by 5 years for staff who wish to take early retirement, a review panel decided an augmentation of 2 years would be fair on staff and taxpayers. This was widely reported in the local press, and the consensus was that this is generous to staff and hugely unfair to taxpayers.
This Wednesday, during a full meeting, councillors will again have the chance to debate this and make their final decision. The case against this policy is very clear. Council employees already benefit from a very generous, taxpayer-subsidised pension scheme. In a report earlier this year, we highlighted how unsustainable this is and how pension liabilities of councils throughout the country amount to a £53 billion black hole. If staff wish to take early retirement - something the majority of those in the private sector can only dream of - they should receive a pension based on the amount they have contributed. If they have paid in for 30 years, they should receive a pension based on 30 years' contributions.
Staff and unions cannot say this is unfair, and this is the decision councillors should arrive at on Wednesday. Please e-mail your councillors and tell them what you think. If you are unsure who your councillors are, click here to find out.
In September, I wrote about the East Riding of Yorkshire Council's pensions' review. Instead of enhancing pensions by 5 years for staff who wish to take early retirement, a review panel decided an augmentation of 2 years would be fair on staff and taxpayers. This was widely reported in the local press, and the consensus was that this is generous to staff and hugely unfair to taxpayers.
This Wednesday, during a full meeting, councillors will again have the chance to debate this and make their final decision. The case against this policy is very clear. Council employees already benefit from a very generous, taxpayer-subsidised pension scheme. In a report earlier this year, we highlighted how unsustainable this is and how pension liabilities of councils throughout the country amount to a £53 billion black hole. If staff wish to take early retirement - something the majority of those in the private sector can only dream of - they should receive a pension based on the amount they have contributed. If they have paid in for 30 years, they should receive a pension based on 30 years' contributions.
Staff and unions cannot say this is unfair, and this is the decision councillors should arrive at on Wednesday. Please e-mail your councillors and tell them what you think. If you are unsure who your councillors are, click here to find out.