The GMB, Britain’s General Union, has today demanded Government action to promote and protect final salary pension schemes.
This follows the publication of the Pension Policy Institute (PPI) report ‘Property or Pensions?’ and new evidence which highlights growing concern about the future of pensions, with the decline in final salary schemes leading many people to conclude that if employers will not provide for their future then the answer may lie in their home.
Recent figures from a CBI survey have confirmed that take-up for those eligible for final salary schemes was 83% – but that only 38% of those entitled to defined contribution schemes were sufficiently convinced of the merits of the scheme to participate.
“A good occupational pension is fundamental for a secure retirement. It is employers not estate agents who are the key to retirement provision – and property values cannot provide a substitute for a decent pension,” said Kevin Curran, GMB General Secretary.
“The Government must to do more to encourage final salary schemes, so that working people can invest properly for their future and are not forced to gamble on the housing market,” he warned.
