Pat Rafferty: Day of action is about right to retire with dignity

Unite is working jointly with all public-sector unions to support our members. Public-service workers are defending their right to dignity in retirement, which does not mean “gold plated” pensions as some claim.

Half of public-sector pensions pay £5,600 or less a year, with women getting less than £4,000 a year. The Westminster government’s changes would see public-sector staff work longer to pay more into their pensions, which will be worth less.

More than three million people in the UK currently live on a public-sector pension. Another nine million are in public sector pension schemes – that’s one in five workers. In Scotland this figure is even higher - 595,000 people are employed by the public sector or 23.9 per cent of the work force.

In Scotland, the imposed contribution increase has been delayed for local authority workers for the next two years in a deal with the Scottish Government. However, with retirement age extended and the Retail Price Index to Consumer Price Index change still being imposed by Westminster on all Scottish public-sector workers, Unite is warning Scotland’s public sector workers they will also have to work longer for less.

Unite also represents workers in the private sector and knows only too well how unfair it is that 65 per cent of private-sector employees don’t have any employer-sponsored pension provision. But attacking public-sector pensions will not help private sector workers. Worsening terms in the public sector will allow private employers to get away with paying less too.

For months we tried to convince ministers in Westminster that the current arrangements are unsustainable. Now we have no choice. That is why we are balloting 160,000 members and are calling on public-sector workers to vote yes for a day of action on 30 November. Enough is enough.

• Pat Rafferty is the Scotland regional secretary for Unite.