Reject & Fight!

Currently at the inspiring pensions conference called by PCS Left Unity. Great range of speakers and contributions from the floor. The main points have been the importance of maintaining the unity of the movement and ensuring that members are not forced to accept a deal which will make them work longer, pay more and get less.

The case has been strongly made that members who have taken strike action and lost a days pay in order defend their pensions deserve the support of their unions. It would be unacceptable to settle for what is essentially the same deal that was rejected through mass action on November 30th.

A joint statement is being agreed by the meeting now and will be posted asap.

For more detail of the conference, follow @OxfordNov30 or search #rejectandfight on Twitter.

Three Great Campaigning Resources

On Saturday, the South East Region TUC held an excellent mobilising conference - Fighting for Public Services: Pensions Justice for All.  As well as all the energy, enthusiasm and campaigning experience, I picked up three important campaigning resources, which are a must-have for anyone who cares about pensions or simply wants to know more about the trades union case.

1) There is an alternative... The case against cuts in public spending produced by PCS - This excellent pamphlet takes on the government's cuts strategy and provides real facts and figures to show why it is economic madness. It looks at Economic Growth, Public Investment, Privatisation and Tax Justice and proposes a real economic alternative.  At 12 pages with lots of illustrations, it's a quick but very informative read.

2) Fair Pensions for All produced by PCS, NPC, Unite, NUT & UCU - A joint publication by trades unions and the National Pensioners Convention, this small pamphlet goes through the detail of public sector pensions, private sector pensions and the state pension.  It makes a clear case for the affordability of public sector pensions as well as the need to tackle the crisis in the private sector.  It also draws sharp attention to the fact that the state pension has now fallen below the poverty line and highlights the number of UK pensioners living in poverty.

3) Union Matters produced by Oxford & District TUC - Our own local publication, produced by unions in Oxfordshire, this is an 8-page paper with articles from a range of local unions, including those striking on November 30th.  It is free to distribute and has a large full-colour poster on the back with details of the local march on November 30th.  The articles inside include information about the government's pensions proposals and examples of the impact on local public sector workers.  A great mobilising tool for the strikes and free to give out!

Hard copies of all these resources are available from Oxford & District TUC by emailing nov30@odtuc.org.uk or calling 07967392229.

Why push us into poverty?

I spent my early years of employment hearing the government scaring everyone witless about the 'big pensions crisis' and how we were all doomed to live our twilight years in poverty because no one was saving enough for their pensions.

How exactly did the pensions crisis change into an attack on the occupational schemes in the public sector? It seems the government have changed their tune and  actually want public servants to live in poverty in their retirement.

Why do I say that? Well the government's own stats say the official pensioner poverty level is £176 a week - the full state pension is £102, so if your work pension is less than £74 a week you will already be in poverty with your current 'gold plated' pension. Dave Prentis from Unison says that the average woman in local government currently gets £60 a week as a works pension- even my maths can work that one out!

So rather than improving the situation for their own employees this government wants to push them deeper into poverty -even on their own figures

Why is it OK to bail out rich bankers but not to ensure that hard-working public servants should have some security and dignity in retirement ? That's why all public servants need to take action and join the strike on November 30

Fair pensions for all: public and private

What we’re asking for is quite simple.

• Stop the attack on public sector pensions
• Increase state pension to official poverty level of £178/week. Currently £102/week.
• Make it a legal requirement for all employers to provide a good occupational pension scheme.

And how do we pay for all this?

• Create jobs, don’t cut them, to boost the economy... through investment in public services, green technology, house-building and more.
• Collect £120billion of unpaid, avoided tax. Don’t cut tax inspectors’ jobs!

We're all in it together... except for the fat cats

We all remember Cameron’s words - “We’re all in it together”. But public servants are taking a hit for the bankers’ mistakes! The public sector is suffering because of what fat cats have done. We’ve all heard about nurses, social workers and the like losing their pensions, and the temptation is to think “So what?” But this strategy will hurt the private sector just as much... because workers really are all in it together.

In this race to the bottom, private sector workers are suffering too. That’s why it’s a mistake to mock public workers’ “gold-plated pensions” or refuse to sympathise in their struggle. Private sector workers might believe the lie that pensions are an unaffordable luxury  - but it’s time to look at what’s going on in the boardroom.

We recently heard that the salaries of FTSE 100 directors have gone up by 49% on average – and since pensions are linked to pay, you can imagine what’s happened to their pensions. Meanwhile, we are told that pensions aren’t affordable.

The government isn’t opposed to good-quality pension provision either – as long as it goes to the very richest.  £10billion of tax relief  on pensions- that’s a quarter of what’s on offer -  goes to the richest 1%. In other words, private sector pensions are gold-plated, but only for the bosses.

That’s why we shouldn’t let them set private sector workers against those in the public sector. We really are all in it together. That’s why we should march together on November 30th to demand a fair pension for all workers. Speak to your colleagues about the great pensions rip-off and keep checking back here for more!