Members will recall from our last USS update that with the first phase of contribution increases from the 2017 valuation now in effect, the USS trustee has since the end of February been considering a proposal from Universities UK for…
Comment on Trinity College exit from USS
Cambridge UCU naturally regrets the decision made by Trinity College Council to leave USS – but not because it will make a significant difference the strength to the employer covenant or undermine USS’s financial position. As Trinity acknowledge, and has been…
USS Update
It is almost exactly a year since Universities UK, in response to sustained industrial action by UCU members in defence of their pension benefits, proposed the establishment of a Joint Expert Panel (JEP) on the USS valuation. Much has happened…
Employer views on the JEP: UUK’s report on the latest consultation with USS employers
UUK have now published an analysis of responses to the employer consultation on the recommendations of the USS Joint Expert Panel. 127 employers responded, between them accounting for 94% of active USS members. (UUK says they “represent” those members, which is doubtful.) 118…
Finally asking the right questions? Some comments on the UUK employer consultation on the JEP recommendations for USS
Last week Universities UK published a consultation document, to be sent to all USS employers, in response to the report and recommendations of the Joint Expert Panel on USS. All USS employers – from the University of Manchester to the…
The JEP Report
The report of the Joint Expert Panel on USS was published on Thursday 13 September. The JEP’s report – agreed, as required by the Terms of Reference, by consensus among all six panel members and the independent chair – provides…
Cambridge UCU’s submission to the USS Joint Expert Panel
Cambridge UCU Pensions Officer Richard Farndale made the below submission to the Joint Expert Panel, in consultation with the rest of our branch committee. This submission has also been published as a USSbrief. We welcome discussion of the points raised…
The USS cost-sharing contribution increases
Last week, USS published an update for scheme members that detailed proposed increases in contribution rates for both employers and employees from 1 April 2019. We have known since early May that the USS trustee would not maintain status quo…
Motion to SHESC on Joint Expert Panel
Motion to SHESC: on the Joint Expert Panel Conference notes that the membership has had no role yet in shaping the structure or operation of the Joint Expert Panel. Conference believes the JEP is not a negotiation but a fact-finding…
Motion to SHESC on transparency and the USS Joint Expert Panel
Motion for SHESC: transparency and the USS Joint Expert Panel Conference notes: that satisfactory recommendations from the UCU-UUK Joint Expert Panel (JEP) are crucial to acceptable resolution of the USS dispute; that the lack of transparency severely undermined confidence in…