UNISON rejects fat cat attack on public sector pensions

UNISON Scotland has strongly rejected the latest attack on public sector pensions as simply scaremongering by fat cats anxious to keep their own incomes bloated at the expense of cuts for ordinary workers in both public and private sectors. http://www.unison-scotland.org.uk/news/2010/julyaug/0707.htm


Dave Watson UNISON Scottish Organiser said:
"The scaremongering by the fat cats today is designed once more to disguise the real pensions divide - between rich and poor, not between public and private sector. Public sector pensions are not gold plated, and they don't cost the billions which these fat cats are claiming. The Institute of Directors is simply anxious to keep its members incomes bloated at the expense of cuts for ordinary workers in both public and private sectors."

A report published today by a new body called the Public Sector Pensions Commission, for the Institute of Directors, has been given widespread coverage in mainstream media. It claims that public sector pensions are costing the taxpayer twice as much as had previously been thought, and that as a result public service workers should pay increased contribution, have their pension age increased and have their pensions reduced.

Dave Watson said:
"In reality the average local government worker gets a pension of around £4,000 per year when they retire. It's a tiny fraction of the fat cat payoffs. And public sector pensions are affordable overall.

"The culprits behind this attack on the pensions of ordinary public service workers are in fact directors of the biggest private companies - real fat cats, with really gold plated pensions. This self-styled 'independent' Public Sector Pensions Commission is nothing of the sort. It is a front for right wing think tank the Institute for Economic Affairs and the Institute of Directors, a club for the bosses of big business.

"Further analysis of this report shows that the time frame chosen for the figures has been highly selective - it just looks at the recent crash when stock values and interest rates have been low - which means returns on pension fund investments have also been low. If the same calculation was done when the market was on the up - as it was and will be again, unless the government causes another recession with its budget cuts - we could slash employee contributions to nothing."

"Also, not all pensions are unfunded. Even for those, there have been years where government has not needed to put extra cash in."