PCS and fellow unions continue campaign over pensions injustice

The union is fighting on over the pensions injustice – a battle that that has been strung out by the government for five years, to the great detriment of our members.

The Court of Appeal delivered a disappointing judgement in April, rejecting the appeal by PCS and other unions against the UK Government’s meddling with the pension cost control arrangements. 

PCS will support a bid to take this case to the Supreme Court.

 The government’s actions have denied members the reductions of pension contributions due since 2019. Members are wrongly overpaying – by an average of £53 a month – and are owed money.

The government has argued that the additional cost of the McCloud judgement, whereby unlawful age discrimination in public sector pensions changes imposed in 2015 are made good, must fall on the members of the scheme.

At PCS conference, Fran Heathcote pledged that “we will keep fighting to put an end to the great pensions robbery”.

Meanwhile PCS has hit back at comments made by former civil service head Lord O’Donnell.

The peer, who retired aged 59 in 2011, and reportedly has a pension in excess of £100,000 a year, said public sector pensions should be cut in favour of higher pay.

It’s not a case of either/or and PCS will fight for both, said Fran: “We have paid into [our pensions] and we are entitled to them, and the valuation of our pension scheme proved that, if anything, we have all paid too much and are due money back. So, the idea that we would give that up in order to fund a pay rise is laughable,” she said.