Public sector pensions are under attack.
The government wants to make people pay more and work longer for a lot less. Despite hours of talks, ministers have yet to seriously negotiate.
Few understand all the detail of pensions, but the issue is simple.
Most public sector workers are modestly paid. Their pay has been frozen while the price of basics is shooting up. Now they are expected to pay an extra £3 billion a year for much worse pensions, by a government that cancelled the banker’s bonus tax that raised almost the same.
It’s wrong to make public sector workers pay an unfair contribution to reducing a deficit they did nothing to cause.
Unions want proper negotiations. We have done fair deals before. That is why the TUC has called a day of action for pensions justice on November 30. It’s a chance to stand up for decent pensions and tell ministers to start negotiating.