Dear Times Higher
We write as representatives of the Left on the Higher Education Committee and other UCU activists who are utterly opposed to any retreat from defending members’ pensions. We have carried out a careful critical analysis of the different proposals and are calling on members to reject the current USS offer which will lead to up to 20% cuts.
We believe that UCU is consulting members over accepting a retreat of historic proportions that will mean all our members pay more. Those in Final Salary (three quarters of active USS membership) will have their pension cut, and a great number of staff will be placed in the position where they cannot afford to retire. Although on first glance, the offer might appear to be a small improvement for new members currently on the (appalling) Career Revalued Benefits (CRB) Scheme introduced in 2011, in reality it is not.
If members vote No, we are threatened with the imposition of a different UUK proposal. Therefore we need to compare the two proposals.
Our assessment is that the trade-off of an increase of 1.5% employee contributions for a 6% benefit improvement is projected to be broadly cost-neutral to USS and the Employers. The UUK proposal has now been changed to have the same Defined Contribution ‘cap’ at £55,000, so the only difference between the proposal UCU is balloting over and the UUK proposal is whether USS members would wish to invest more in the CRB scheme.
Given a real choice, members in the CRB scheme would say they do not want to pay more. They want a better scheme with a better value for money, such as the current Final Salary scheme. Once inflation, the preference for money now rather than in the future, the fact that many CRB members will pay increased contributions for more years than they will receive pensions (and the likelihood of further reductions in the future) are taken into account, a 1.5% increase in contributions now will outweigh the projected 6% increase at some point in the future, and may make the scheme unaffordable for many low-paid members.
The second problem with both proposals is the introduction of a new Defined Contribution section with lower levels of employer investment (12% instead of 18%) and poorer projected benefits, which will be applied to all salary over £55,000 (with this amount updated at most by CPI). If pay rises increase above CPI as they have in the past then over time more staff will be drawn into this part of the scheme.
Finally, there is no good reason for these changes. The approach to the valuation has been extensively criticised and there is no real evidence of any need for cuts in benefits or increases in contributions.
We can still win, but to win, we need to be prepared to take hard-hitting industrial action. We call for members to vote against the proposals in the e-ballot, and pass motions through branches calling for rejection of the offer, support industrial action, and to call a special HE sector conference to determine our strategy to win this crucial dispute.
Marion Hersh, NEC member and USS national negotiator, University of Glasgow
Sean Wallis, NEC member, University College London
Ioanna Ioannou, NEC member, University College London
Prof Andreas Bieler, NEC member, University of Nottingham
Lesley McGorrigan, NEC member, University of Leeds
Karen Evans, NEC member, University of Liverpool
Lesley Kane, NEC member, Open University
Jo McNeill, NEC member, University of Liverpool
Saira Weiner, NEC member, Liverpool John Moores University (post-92)
Sue Abbott, NEC member, Northumbria University (post-92)
Patricia McManus, NEC member, University of Brighton (post-92)
Prof Paul Blackledge, NEC member, Leeds Beckett University (post-92)
Prof Dennis Leech, UCU President, Warwick University
Saladin Meckled-Garcia, UCU Vice President, University College London
Marian Mayer, UCU Chair, Bournemouth University
Rick Saull, UCU Branch Secretary, Queen Mary University of London
Caoimhe Mader McGuinness, UCU Anti-casualisation Rep, Queen Mary University of London
Prof Craig Brandist, UCU President, University of Sheffield.
Julie Hearn, UCU Membership Officer, University of Lancaster
Prof Steven French, UCU Executive member, University of Leeds
Andy Stafford, UCU Rep, University of Leeds
Gail Day, UCU Rep, University of Leeds
Johnny Darlington, UCU Branch Secretary, SOAS
James Eastwood, UCU GTA Representative, SOAS
Andrew Kennedy, UCU Executive member, SOAS
Rachel Cohen, UCU Executive member, City University London
Nalini Vittal, UCU Executive member, University College London
Martin Fry, UCU Executive member, University College London
Matthew Beaumont, UCU Rep, University College London
Bernie Maguire, UCU President, University of Salford
Helen Franks, UCU Branch Secretary, University of Salford
Christine Sheehy, UCU Northwest Regional Chair, University of Salford
Glyn Heath, UCU Northwest Regional Treasurer, University of Salford
Eleni Michalopoulou, UCU Vice President, University of Liverpool
Mark O’Brien, UCU Membership Secretary, University of Liverpool
Pam Clarke, UCU Executive member, University of Liverpool
David Stewart, UCU Executive member, University of Liverpool
Alex Lancaster, UCU Equality Officer, University of Liverpool
Prof Des Freedman, UCU Branch Secretary, Goldsmiths University London
Carlo Morelli, UCU Vice President, University of Dundee
Peter Woodward, UCU Executive member, Imperial College London
Roddy Slorach, UCU Equality Officer, Imperial College London
Steve Roskams, UCU Rep, University of York
Mike Arrowsmith, UCU Membership Officer, University of St Andrews
Jim Wolfreys, UCU President, Kings College London
Andy Scally, UCU Executive member, University of Bradford
Helen MacCarthy, UCU Branch Secretary, University of Hull
Hedley Bashforth, UCU Branch Secretary, University of Bath
Jonathan Charley, UCU President, University of Strathclyde
Paul-Francois Tremlett, UCU Rep, Open University
Geoff Abbott, Newcastle University
Sara Maioli, Newcastle University
Prof Malcolm Povey, University of Leeds
Prof Raymond Bush, University of Leeds
Prof Catherine E. Karkov, University of Leeds
Nick Thurston, University of Leeds
Prof Alex Callinicos, Kings College London
Prof David Treece, Kings College London
Prof Susanne Kord, University College London
Gabriel Moshenska, University College London
Rory Fitzgerald, City University London
Lee Jones, Queen Mary University of London
Elmy Thompson, Imperial College London
Ciara Kierans, Liverpool University
Feyzi Ismail, SOAS
Paul O’Connell, SOAS
Chris Gutkind, SOAS
Mark Laffey, SOAS
Kristin Surak, SOAS
Thomas Marois, SOAS
Fujiko Kobayashi, SOAS
Seán Doyle, UCL Institute of Education
Anne Alexander, University of Cambridge
Prof Richard Farndale, University of Cambridge
Peter Dwyer, Ruskin College, Oxford
John G Walker, Ruskin College, Oxford
Prof James Newell, University of Salford
Prof Allison Drew, University of York
Daragh O’Reilly, University of Sheffield
Celia Hollingworth, University of Bristol
Andy Coles, University of Manchester
Wendy Olsen, University of Manchester
John Costello, University of Manchester
Davidson Chademana, University of Dundee
Gerry Mooney, Open University
Prof Suman Gupta, Open University
Prof Steve Edwards, Open University
Bruce Heil, Open University
Alison Higgs, Open University
Anne Martin, Open University
Paula James, Open University
Chris A. Williams, Open University
Paul Brook, University of Leicester
Xanthe Whittaker, University of Leicester
John Parrington, University of Oxford
Kathryn Cruz, Keele University
Fabienne Emmerich, Keele University
Bahadur Najak, University of Durham
Matteo Mandarini, Queen Mary University of London
Vivian Vignoles, University of Sussex
Nick Till, University of Sussex
Álvaro Martínez-Pérez, University of Sheffield
Ken Willis, University of Liverpool
Cliff Snaith, UCU London Region Secretary, London Metropolitan University (post-92)
Mark Campbell, UCU Chair, London Metropolitan University (post-92)
David Hardman, UCU Membership Officer, London Metropolitan University (post-92)
Richard Payne, UCU Executive member, London Metropolitan University (post-92)
Steve Mardy, UCU Chair (City Campus), Leeds Beckett University (post-92)
Mark Abel, Chair UCU Coordinating Committee, University of Brighton (post-92)
Adrian Budd, UCU Branch Secretary, London South Bank University (post-92)
Prof Tom Hickey, University of Brighton (post-92)
Prof Raphael Salkie, University of Brighton (post-92)
Robin Dunford, University of Brighton (post-92)
Jenny Robertson, University of Brighton (post-92)
Nicolas Van Labeke, Glasgow School of Art (post-92; a 13-year USS member unable to vote)
Jon Berry, University of Hertfordshire (post-92)
Prof Jonathan Davies, De Montford University, Leicester (post-92)
Sean Vernell, UCU Coordinating Committee Secretary, City and Islington College (FE)