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The College of Glasgow and the native department of the College and Faculty Union (UCU) launched a joint assertion on the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), agreeing that the precedence on the subsequent valuation needs to be member advantages and never decrease contribution charges.
The college mentioned it’s ready on the subsequent valuation to extend its contributions and calls on employer representatives to hunt settlement on this “relying on the monetary well being of the sector”.
The assertion is an settlement on “a future exit technique from the present USS dispute” – and marks a big intervention within the protracted debate about the way forward for one of many UK’s largest personal pension schemes.
Glasgow’s principal, long-serving Prof Sir Anton Muscatelli, is a preeminent economist and a employer-appointed member of the USS board.
The assertion affirms the college’s view that ought to the following valuation reveal an improved monetary outlook for the scheme, “any upside… needs to be used to enhance member advantages and never scale back employer or worker contribution charges from present ranges”. The college confirmed it supported the present employers’ nationwide negotiation place of a most inexpensive contribution price of as much as 23.7 – however would take into account reviewing this on the subsequent valuation.
The college says employers ought to “present enhanced covenant help by means of the long run valuation course of and recognise that this could apply in a negotiated option to any profit proposals formally introduced by means of the JNC [Joint Negotiating Committee] by both UUK [Univerisites UK] or UCU”.
Employers have hitherto proved hesistant to offer blanket guarantees of providing the load of their covenant help to union-backed proposals.
Earlier this month, UCU revealed that 27 college branches had a renewed mandate to proceed strike motion over cuts to the USS pensions. Many department polls returned a ‘sure’ vote however didn’t surpass the 50% turnout threshold for industrial motion ballots. Glasgow UCU department was amongst these to fulfill the authorized threshold – and the college might now face 10 days of strike motion within the subsequent six months.
There are greater than 32,000 college students enrolled on the college. Its revealed accounts present that Glasgow has an annual funds of greater than £800 million and an endowment value greater than £200 million.
Final yr, the vice-chancellors of Cambridge and Oxford universities penned an open letter with native union branches on the necessity to reform the USS.
Learn extra: UCU convention votes to proceed strikes and marking boycott
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