Update on USS - decision of the Joint Negotiating Committee
02 Sep 2021
The Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) has decided on a package of changes to the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) following consultation on the USS 2020 valuation.
Changes recommended by Universities UK were accepted by the JNC after the Chair’s casting vote. No formal alternative proposal was put forward by the University and College Union (UCU). The decision is subject to formal sign-off from the USS Trustee, and will then progress this autumn to a formal employer consultation with affected employees (current members and those eligible to join USS) and representative bodies. This process of consultation will allow the further views of recognised trade union bodies and other representatives, and individual affected employees, to be recorded and considered by employers, the USS Trustee and the JNC before any final decisions are made and changes implemented.
The consultation with members and their representatives will provide detailed information on what the changes would mean in terms of future contribution costs and benefits. Members’ pension benefits built up to date are unaffected by these changes.
Throughout the 2020 valuation process, our University has recognised the very difficult challenges facing all USS members, employers and the Trustee. There is an absolute need to find a long term and sustainable solution for all stakeholders and to enable members to have confidence in the scheme. Hence we have argued for an immediate consideration of the future of the USS scheme and its governance.
President and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell, said: “Our commitment to our staff has been at the forefront throughout the consultation and the JNC’s negotiations. We want them to have access to an affordable and sustainable pension which will provide for their retirement. As an employer we believe that the changes brought forward by the JNC provide the best solution at this time, but we must now work on the longer term future of the scheme.
“We recognise this been a challenging situation for staff and have worked hard to ensure they have a pension without ever increasing contributions.”
The JNC is an independently chaired group made up of an equal number of representatives from UCU on behalf of members, and Universities UK (UUK) on behalf of employers. The USS 2020 valuation has been used as the basis for negotiations on how much employees and employers will pay in contributions and how benefits to members may have to change.
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