UCU members reject pension changes

Members of the UCU academic staff union have expressed overwhelming opposition to planned changes to the universities pension scheme (USS). The employers want to replace the current final salary scheme with a career average scheme, but a massive 96% of 31,000 UCU members voting rejected the plan.

Oxford and Cambridge universities have insisted that union proposals for increased member contributions, an increased retirement age for new entrants, and a cost-sharing mechanism should be considered in the consultation process alongside the plan supported by the employers.