Hundreds of public sector workers from across the UK will descend on Parliament today to lobby their local MPs on changes that the Government is proposing to make to pension schemes.
The TUC-organised lobby, ‘Protecting public sector pensions’, will take place in the Palace of Westminster’s central lobby as part of a campaign against government plans to increase the age at which public sector pensions will be paid.
The plans call for an increase in the normal public sector retirement age from 60 to 65, and an increase in the age at which people can take early retirement from 50 to 55.
The unions believe that these changes are neither fair nor justified, and say they do not believe the Government has devoted sufficient time to exploring other alternatives.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: “It is generally recognised that public sector workers earn less money than people who do their equivalent jobs in the private sector in return for a more superior pension.”
The Government has said pension ages need to rise in line with increased life spans and better health in old age.
By Michael Millar
