Month: November 2014

Update on consultation on USS reform – 25 November 2014

USS 2014 Actuarial Valuation

As part of the process for the 2014 actuarial valuation of the assets and liabilities of the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS), the trustee is currently consulting on the proposed assumptions and data which it intends to use to determine the value of the scheme’s liabilities, and a draft of the updated Statement of Funding Principles.  Access the consultation document

 

Consultation process

The consultation requested feedback from Universities UK (UUK) and through it from individual participating employers by the end of November 2014.

On 21 November UUK issued a note on UUK’s assumptions proposed in the USS consultation and asked for responses by 28 November.

 

Imperial’s response

The College has chosen to share its response with staff. Its submission to UUK also includes a report published by a working group of Imperial academic staff, containing expertise in Mathematical Finance, Statistics, Actuarial Science and experience in decision making for large external pension funds, drawn together from the College’s Departments of Mathematics and Physics.

Imperial College London’s response to UUK on USS’s consultation on the proposed assumptions for the scheme’s technical provisions and recovery plan

Report on USS Pension Valuation by Imperial Working Party

Suspension of UCU Industrial Action

Suspension of UCU Industrial Action

Dear Colleagues,

I am very pleased to write to inform you that UCU today confirmed a suspension of all industrial action in relation to their USS dispute. The suspension is to take immediate effect and will run to at least 15 January 2015.

The suspension has been agreed between UCU and UUK to allow a period of intense negotiation. We are pleased at this development and hope that a solution can be agreed.

Under the terms of UCU’s agreement with UUK, the 66 affected universities have been asked to confirm that they will not be applying their policies on the withholding of pay for breach of contract in respect of any individuals who actually participated between 6 and 19 November. This is on the condition that those individuals make up all work missed in a reasonable period of time. We have provided this confirmation.

It is the view of the President’s and Provost’s Boards that any reforms should strive to offer an affordable and sustainable pension scheme which has flexibility and remains attractive to both current and future members. We understand the importance of this issue to all of you and we will continue to represent our views to decision makers in this process. We will keep you informed as further information emerges.

With kind regards,

Louise Lindsay

Director of Human Resources