USS pension changes ‘leave typical academics £240K worse off’

Average members set to get £18,200 a year in retirement under latest changes, compared with £23,800 under pre-2011 scheme

Published on
September 4, 2019
Last updated
September 4, 2019
Nick Mayo
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Source: Alamy
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Higher education pensions

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Print headline: USS changes ‘leave UK staff £240K worse off’

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Reader's comments (5)

#1 Submitted by D--S on September 4, 2019 - 1:52pm
"Assumes 30 years' service, 27 years' retirement" tells the whole story: it is clearly ludicrous to expect that you can be paid as many years for not working as for working. There is no "saving up" for retirement. All you can do is accumulate promises that someone else (younger) will keep working and pay for your living expenses - at the same time as they pay for their own and bring up the next generation of children to pay for their retirement. Those of us who were sold this promise of a comfortable life after paid work have to realise that it was based on an assumption that it wouldn't last more than a few years. If we're going to live forever we have to devise a new method of sharing out the world's economic output.
#2 Submitted by Gen Y Academic on September 4, 2019 - 6:19pm
Any academic under 45 who is a member of USS is wasting their time with what has become simply a gratuitously unfair intergenerational asset transfer scheme. Transfer out anyone?
#3 Submitted by a.j.... on September 5, 2019 - 10:16am
I totally agree! I am under 45 and would transfer out if I could. But the University is not willing to pay its contribution to any other scheme other than the USS scheme. I would gladly contribute to a DC scheme given my age but this is simply not being made available as an option - I would have to do this on my own and forgo any employer's contributions which would make this route untenable. Further, I feel that the unions are blinded by this pension issue. What they should be battling for is real wage increases as that has a greater impact on my ability to save for retirement. It seems that we are getting hurt both in our below-inflation pay rises and to the cuts in our pension benefits for which we are paying more and more.
#4 Submitted by Gen Y Academic on September 5, 2019 - 1:13pm
It would be great if we could get all the employers to pay into a different, cheaper scheme like a lot of the post-92 unis. I'm amazed at how singular the debate on pensions has been, younger academics have been completely ignored. We need more diversity in the options available I totally agree.
#5 Submitted by k.j.... on September 5, 2019 - 2:07pm
I'm amazed that Professional Services staff are completely ignored in all reporting of the pensions issue. Many of these staff are fighting to preserve a pension which will allow them a modest retirement and not the one of luxury that the scheme guarantees to senior academics. It is also quite obscene that the most well paid staff are given an equivalent to the employers pension contribution as part of their remuneration package when their pension pot is full.

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