Please write to your VC asking for no detriment to our pension!

Just as our court case is forcing the truth out, a new financial monitoring report from the USS trustee has confirmed that, even according to their flawed assumptions, scheme assets have soared to over £88bn and that the deficit has shrunk by 85%. The trustee has confirmed if a new valuation was conducted now, benefits could be increased and/or contributions reduced. This confirms our “no detriment” position and that our pension should be enhanced. UCU asked UUK to revoke the cuts but they say they need a mandate from employers to do so.

So please write to your Principal/VC using this template:

Dear …,

As I’m sure you have seen, the latest financial monitoring report from USS shows unprecedented growth. The scheme’s assets have risen by £22 billion, and are now valued at £88 billion. The report shows that as a consequence of this growth no cuts or additional funds are required to maintain existing benefits. This is in line with analysis put forward by the UCU representative on the USS JEP. In light of this information, I’m also sure that you will agree that it is a shame that UUK refused to accept the obvious flaws in the 2020 valuation or to consider any alternative to substantial cuts to USS members’ benefits. The last few months of industrial action, which have hugely disrupted our students’ education and our day-to-day lives, could have been avoided had UUK been prepared to work with, rather than against, workers in the institutions it represents.

I’m writing today with two requests.

Firstly, I am writing to request that you use your position to urge UUK: immediately to acknowledge this growth in the scheme’s assets; to agree that there is no need for cuts or contribution rises and instruct USS to revoke the changes that come into effect on April 1; to return to negotiations with a commitment to agreeing a solution; and to instruct USS to maintain existing benefits.

Secondly, I am writing to request that you use your position to open a dialogue within UUK about the body’s default adversarial position towards university workers and the UCU, which the episode around the USS valuation clearly shows to be a source of unnecessary disruption and conflict. UUK’s intransigence over the valuation gave workers no alternative but to enter into costly industrial action, and has now been shown to be based on faulty information that they refused properly to interrogate. How can we ensure a situation like this doesn’t happen again?

Our sector is at a major turning point. Years of declining pay and working conditions have left many workers considering their future in the sector – 60% according to a recent UCU survey. In that context, USS employers’ apparent preference for disruption and deficit payments over even short-term contribution increases will have helped many make up their minds to leave. And now we have strong evidence that no changes to benefits or contributions are necessary. Please take this opportunity to show staff that they are valued, and that you are prepared to work to reverse the decline in our conditions.

Yours sincerely, 

 

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