Sam Marsh Profile picture
Nov 16, 2021 12 tweets 6 min read Read on X
A long overdue thread on the @USSpensions consultation, and what you might consider saying.

Firstly, here's consultation link. You will need your USS member number, which you can find on the top of emails from them, plus identifying information. 1/
ussconsultation2021.co.uk/members
Once you're logged in, you can play with the modeller and confirm that @UniversitiesUK are shameless about misrepresenting the scale of the cuts. (I am projected to lose ~36% of my future guaranteed pension, which falls to ~28% including DC converted to an annuity.) 2/
Once you've figured out the impacts, then you can go to the questions. I will not tell you what to say, as the questions are fairly clear and I would expect the responses fairly obvious. But here are some things you might like to consider saying at various points. 3/
- If you consider the cuts to be based on a distorted valuation, conducted at the worst point in the pandemic, say so!
- If you believe the valuation suffers from extreme levels of prudence, then say so! (@martinwolf_ of the @FT would probably agree.) 4/
ft.com/content/5f20cc…
- If you consider @USSpensions to have breached the scheme rules in how they conducted the valuation processes, biasing the negotiations away from @ucu and towards @UniversitiesUK, then say so! 5/
- If you consider the directors of the scheme to have acted contrary to your best interests, whether of the valuation date, the lack of control of scheme costs, the lack of divestment, or the equalities considerations of the proposed cuts, then say so! 6/
- If you are furious at the misrepresentation by @UniversitiesUK over the scale of the cuts, then say so!
- If you are prepared to strike to ensure that the cuts are revoked, and a new valuation is demanded by employers, then say so! 7/
- Of course, if you believe that these cuts are a rational and necessary response to the situation the scheme's in, then say that instead! 8/
- And if you think that the consultation is a waste of your time, then you have my sympathies. But I encourage you to fill it in, not least so that we can point to the levels of outrage and show that we are accurately representing the views of the scheme's members. 9/9
ONE IMPORTANT POINT TO ADD: PLEASE RETWEET!

- If you think that maintaining current benefits is the top priority (even if that means paying 11% from April-October while a new valuation is undertaken), say so!

Employers are trying to pretend this option doesn't exist. #USSmess
Mike's blog below gives very useful arguments for why the fall-back position of maintaining current benefits should be supported. mikeotsuka.medium.com/the-overwhelmi…
And more from @MikeOtsuka here on the importance of answering Qs 5 & 6. mikeotsuka.medium.com/please-reply-t…

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Sam Marsh

Sam Marsh Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @Sam_Marsh101

Dec 12, 2023
Yesterday's Vice-Chancellor's update at @SheffieldUni contained a passage on the role of Senate in the 'new schools' restructure. In it, he claimed "Senate does not make decisions regarding our structure". This is not quite true. (And spot the difference left and right!) 1/
Image
Image
Senate is the "academic authority" of @SheffieldUni according to the University's own description, which the VC's copied-and-pasted text omitted. Council turns to Senate for advice on decisions related to academic matters. And there's established process for that advice. 2/ Image
In March, the Faculty of Health was subject to an analogous proposed restructure by UEB. Senate was asked to recommend that change to Council. This is proper process, and Senate approved the recommendation. 3/

(15/3/23 minutes here: ) sheffield.ac.uk/govern/senate/…
Image
Read 16 tweets
Sep 12, 2023
I've spent some of the past few days reflecting on the hardline position that @SheffieldUni management took at our negotiation meeting last week aimed at attempting to avert 10 days of local strike action. If you missed the news, they came empty-handed. Why? 1/
The signs leading up to the negotiations had been positive. The University had published an all-staff update that spelled out the grounds for a resolution. Interactions in the lead up to the meeting had been more constructive than earlier in the summer. 2/
And yet, when we turned up to the meeting last Friday, they made it clear they had nothing to offer, and, to an extent, there was nothing to be discussed. What changed? 3/
Read 13 tweets
Jul 25, 2023
Attention @SheffieldUCU members! Want to check your MAB deductions have been applied correctly? Here's my guide, which I think is the way to go: 1/
Step 1: Look at your July payslip, and multiply the 'Salary' entry by 12 to get your annual salary.
(Alternatively, look on MyJob at your 'My Staff Record' to find your current Annual Salary.) 2/
Step 2: Divide your annual salary from Step 1 by 365 to see the daily deduction rate that the University is supposed to be applying. 3/
Read 10 tweets
May 18, 2023
Wow! Monitoring figures for 31 March 2023 drop from @USSpensions, and show a *£7.6bn SURPLUS* and pre-cut benefits costing *just 21.8% of salary*! Expect these figures to change in the full valuation, but we're bang on track for a historic win. #ucuRISING ddlnk.net/2PRX-1DZUI-BF5… We have, today, published t...
@USSpensions I think @RedActuary and Derek Benstead of @FirstActuarial deserve a huge amount of credit for pointing out that time would be strongly in our favour in this story, proved absolutely right.
@USSpensions @RedActuary @FirstActuarial Just think about what was 'supposed' to happen: we should have rolled over in 2018 because of "tough economic realities" (or some such phrase), only now would the surplus have appeared, and employers would have told us that the matter was settled. We didn't let them. #ucuRISING
Read 4 tweets
Feb 23, 2023
No announcement from @USSPensions, but the Joint Negotiating Committee has a new independent chair, Akbar Khan, replacing previous interim chair, Judith Fish. That's three key posts (chair of trustee board, CEO, JNC chair) with different holders going into the 2023 valuation. 1/
Of course, @Barker4Kate joined as chair of the board partway through the 2020 valuation (though it was Eastwood's hawkish board that set the tone for it) and Galvin hasn't yet exited, but last I heard he was due to leave by the end of March. 2/
There has been a major overhaul of the board membership since the 2020 valuation began, most noticeable in the change in independent directors. Some ultra conservative hawks from the city are gone. (Wish I had a before-and-after! Current board below.) 3/
Read 5 tweets
Feb 22, 2023
A year ago today, I was party to what I hope is the biggest stitch-up I'll ever see close up: the pushing through by the JNC of a savage cut in future accrual in @USSpensions based on an self-evidently unsound valuation rooted in pandemic-induced market turmoil. 1/
It was awful. Nothing was fair or right about the decision taken that day. The scheme's rules had been bent, probably breached, by @USSPensions to skew things in favour of @UniversitiesUK, who themselves lied to their members about @UCU's counter-proposal to ensure it sank. 2/
We hoped that the JNC chair might be receptive to the charges we laid about process, but the legal advice they received gave the all-clear. That legal advice couldn't answer the key question we posed about @USSpensions apparent rule breach, but that didn't seem to matter. 3/
Read 12 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(