Council Cleaners and CEOs
News broke yesterday that private sector pensions - have lost a third of value in three years.
Stock markets have been going up and down like a roller-coaster of late - but the general direction of travel is clear - down, down, down.
And that means that people in the private sector - who rely on 'money purchase' pension schemes and a basket of investments to provide for their future retirement income - have been very badly hurt.
So anyone retiring on a £15,000 a year private pension in 2008 - would now receive only £10,500 - a bit of a shocker as they say.
Which makes an interesting backdrop for the planned strikes over public sector pensions - that the trade unions aim to hold later this year - if their members vote to support industrial action.
The government's argument will be made that much easier - if trade unions insist on defending final salary pension schemes.
Which give higher paid staff a huge public subsidy - because they take out much more than they put in during their working careers.
If the trade unions get their way - the low paid will be striking to help the higher paid .
Or to put things another way - the part-time council cleaner will be fighting to defend the pension benefits - of the council chief executive.
Stock markets have been going up and down like a roller-coaster of late - but the general direction of travel is clear - down, down, down.
And that means that people in the private sector - who rely on 'money purchase' pension schemes and a basket of investments to provide for their future retirement income - have been very badly hurt.
So anyone retiring on a £15,000 a year private pension in 2008 - would now receive only £10,500 - a bit of a shocker as they say.
Which makes an interesting backdrop for the planned strikes over public sector pensions - that the trade unions aim to hold later this year - if their members vote to support industrial action.
The government's argument will be made that much easier - if trade unions insist on defending final salary pension schemes.
Which give higher paid staff a huge public subsidy - because they take out much more than they put in during their working careers.
If the trade unions get their way - the low paid will be striking to help the higher paid .
Or to put things another way - the part-time council cleaner will be fighting to defend the pension benefits - of the council chief executive.
