Public sector strikes to go ahead after talks fail to settle pension dispute

Evidence of compromise over local government scheme, but unions say government talks failed to close ‘major gaps’ Public sector strikes will go ahead on Thursday after ministers failed to reach a settlement with union leaders over pension reforms despite appearing to offer a significant compromise over the local government scheme. The general secretary of the TUC, Brendan Barber, said strikes would go ahead in schools, colleges, universities, courts, ports and jobcentres on Thursday, after two hours of talks with ministers failed to resolve what he described as “major gaps” between them over the pension plans. He said there were still fundamental disagreements over the major plans to increase contributions, change the system of uprating schemes and increase the pension age in the public sector. PCS, the civil service union leading strikes on Thursday, called the talks a “farce” but the biggest public sector union, Unison, indicated they had been enough for them to delay their strike ballot until later in the summer, in the hope of further concessions. The government issued a statement insisting the talks had been constructive and indicating that they were preparing to offer concessions on the local government scheme, about which there has been serious concern. Some fear that higher contributions could trigger a mass opt-out and the scheme’s collapse. The minister for the Cabinet Office, Francis Maude, and the chief secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, said in a joint statement: “Today’s meeting was constructive and was just one of a series of ongoing talks the government has committed to with the TUC on public service pensions; further meetings have been scheduled for July. This is a genuine consultation to which we are committed in order to try and agree a way forward with the unions, including on how to implement the changes on contributions set out in the spending review. “We recognise that the funding basis for the local government pension scheme is different. There are important implications for how the contributions and benefits interact, as both Lord Hutton and the unions have set out. On that basis, we have agreed to have a more in-depth discussion with local government unions and the TUC about how we take these factors into account. “While the talks are ongoing it is obviously disappointing that some unions have decided on industrial action. But what the recent ballot results show is that there is extremely limited support for the kind of strike action union leaders are calling for. Less than 10% of the civil service workforce has voted for strike actions and only about a third of teachers. “We can assure the public now that we have rigorous contingency plans in place to ensure that their essential services are maintained during the strike action on Thursday.” Barber said: “In some areas it’s clear that there is the possibility of agreement but in terms of some of the key issues there is clearly a major gap betwen our position and that of the government. “The strikes will be taking place on Thursday. Four unions balloted their members and reached that decision and that reflects the degree of anger and worry and real fear there is across everyone who works for public sectors that their pensions are under threat.” Mark Serwotka, the general secretary of the PCS civil service union, whose members are striking on Thursday, said: “It was disappointing that today’s meeting proved to be no different to any of the others. It was a farce. Again the government has shown no interest in actually negotiating on any of the key principles at the heart of this dispute. “And this is a dispute that is entirely of the government’s making. We did not ask for pensions to be cut; we did not ask for public servants to be told they must work years longer and pay more for much less in retirement. Every independent analysis shows that public sector pensions are affordable now and in the future, and costs are falling in the long term. “On Thursday we will see hundreds of thousands of civil and public servants on strike and, on the experience of today’s meeting and the last few months of government obstinacy, we fully expect to be joined by millions more in the autumn.” Dave Prentis, the head of Unison, said his union would not ballot until after further talks in the summer. “There was a sense that today we were in real negotiations,” he said. The Association of Teachers and Lecturers along with the PCS confirmed it would go ahead with strikes. Public sector pensions Trade unions Civil service Teaching Public services policy Polly Curtis guardian.co.uk

Posted by on June 27, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.