The following has been issued to every PCS member by the General Secretary and President of PCS:
Government Intends to Tear Up Longstanding Agreement On Terms And Conditions to Cut Jobs On The Cheap
The Cabinet Office has published proposals for changes to the civil service compensation scheme (CSCS). If implemented, the changes will leave many PCS members tens of thousands of pounds worse off in the event of voluntary or compulsory redundancy.
This is a disgrace, and is particularly cynical at a time when we can clearly see that tens of thousands of jobs are at risk over the next few years.
The CSCS is the redundancy and early retirement payment scheme for the Civil Service and many other public bodies. If your employer is in the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS) you will be covered by the CSCS and the benefits from the scheme are accrued entitlements that we believe the Government have no right to remove. As it is a statutory scheme changes have to be agreed by Parliament. PCS, with the other civil service unions, have been in negotiations with the Cabinet Office about the scheme since the autumn of last year. The published proposals which have not been agreed with the unions do not represent the best offer that could have been made.
The employer refused to put a further offer that would have given some protection during transitional arrangements when PCS was not prepared to be coerced into giving an undertaking to recommend acceptance. Even this revised offer was completely unacceptable and would still have meant a detriment to the vast majority of existing staff, particularly those facing a redundancy situation in the future.
We believe the proposals are an outrageous attempt to cut people's jobs on the cheap at a time when many are worried about job security.
Details of the proposals
The employer plans to sweep away all of the present CSCS terms from 1 st January 2010 and replace them by new arrangements with limited protection for existing staff, in a compulsory redundancy situation only, to 31 st March 2011. The new arrangements would cap any payments at two years pay and with no access to early payment of unreduced pension unless you give up your cash sum to buy out the actuarial reduction. In a voluntary redundancy situation departments will have flexibility to design their own schemes but subject to this two year cap.
In a compulsory redundancy situation all the existing terms will disappear, other than the limited protection to 31st March 2011. They will be replaced by cash only payments of a month's pay for each year of service, doubled after 5 years service, again subject to cap of two year pay! For many members this will mean that their entitlement to redundancy pay is slashed by a year's pay or even more with no access to enhanced and early payment of pensions to those over 50.
There are some people who will benefit especially those over 60 or under 35. But even the under 35s will lose out as under the present terms they would have become entitled to better terms as their age and service increased. Under the new arrangements it will not.
The proposals which affect everyone and would lead to more compulsory redundancies by lessening the use of voluntary redundancy were considered at an emergency meeting of the PCS national executive on 6 August. The NEC has rejected the proposals and is determined to defend members' rights. The NEC is also concerned that if the government gets away with implementing these proposals the next attack we will face, will be on the pension scheme again. We will be seeking to meet Cabinet Office Ministers to make clear our objections and to seek new proposals.
We will be consulting members in a programme of workplace meetings across the
union on your views about the CSCS and what campaigning action we should take and at the same time we will also betaking legal action to try to halt the employers process which we believe is unlawful.
What you should do now
You should respond to the consultation by emailing the employer (pensionspr@cabinetoffice.x.gsi.gov.uk) insisting they honour existing contracts and negotiate a good scheme for new entrants in the way they did for pensions in 2005.
Encourage your colleagues to do so and copy to us at cscs@pcs.org.uk.
Please make your views know to your own management and attend the PCS meetings we will be organising in coming weeks.
With your help we can defeat these proposals. We have successfully defended our pensions in the past and we may have to again. We can do the same on the CSCS.
What this could mean for you
For someone aged 41 who earns £24,000 and has 20 years service, their current entitlement if made compulsorily redundant would be £72,000. Under the changes proposed by the Cabinet Office it would be £48,000, a loss of one third.
For someone aged 51 who earns £24,000 and has 20 years their current entitlement service if made compulsorily redundant is for an enhanced lump sum of £24,000, an additional lump sum of £12,000 and an immediate payment of enhanced pension of £8,000 a year. Under the changes their new entitlement would be just £48,000 and an unenhanced pension and lump sum paid only when they reached age 60.
Someone who began work before 1987 with reserved rights who is aged 46 with 26 years service is entitled to £ 106,000. Their new entitlement would be £48,000.
The above are for illustrative purposes only.
