If you are on a time-limited contract and reaching the end of your time in the institutions or if you decide to leave even if in a permanent type of statutory link, you should spend some time reflecting about your acquired pension rights. In principle, there are three scenarios to consider. Continue reading Transfer-out of pension rights when leaving the institutions
Pensions
Updated conversion coefficients for transfer of pension rights
When you start in the European Institutions, you might already have worked somewhere else and gained pension rights that you can transfer into our pension scheme of European officials (PSEO), a so-called transfer-in. The same is possible or even compulsory when you leave the Institutions, a so-called transfer-out. For a transfer-in, your previous pension scheme transfers a certain amount of money to the PSEO: in return, you get credited with some more time that is used for the calculation of your future pension paid by the PSEO. For a transfer-out, the PSEO calculates what your accumulated ‘years’ are worth and transfers this sum to your next pension scheme.
Continue reading Updated conversion coefficients for transfer of pension rights
Generation 2004’s position on pensions
As explained in our campaign manifesto, Generation 2004 defends the EU civil service but with a difference: we do not aim to defend the acquired rights at all costs. Instead we are in favour of equal pay for equal work. We do not want to open the Staff Regulations –although we have no doubt that this will happen again – but we try to promote concrete and realistic measures to go towards a more egalitarian treatment of all staff and pensioners. Continue reading Generation 2004’s position on pensions
Generation 2004’s position on pensions
First, Generation 2004 welcomes the debate with U4U, which so far seems to be the only staff organisation in the ongoing electoral campaign in Brussels, besides Generation 2004, capable of coming up with clear and unambiguous positions on a range of topics. As far as pensions are concerned, we note the following interesting points made by U4U:
- U4U’s position is to defend acquired rights at all costs
- U4U argue that our pension scheme is fair to everyone
- U4U argue that our pension scheme is sound
- U4U recognises (end of their document) that “The worsening outlook for pay changes and career prospects and consequently the foreseeable decrease in pensions following the revisions of the Staff Regulations in 2004 and 2014 has already resulted in a fall in the contribution of active workers to the pension scheme (from 11.6% to 9.8% for employee contributions…)“.
Transfer-out of pension rights
We are regularly contacted with questions on transfers-in of pension rights (from MS schemes to the EU pension scheme). It is unfortunately difficult to provide definite answers as each case is specific and each MS has its own complex pension system (France alone has 37 different pension schemes, although Macron has announced his wish to merge all the schemes into a single one – good luck!). Essentially everything we wrote in our special issue on pensions remains valid. In particular, transfers-in have become rather unattractive since the introduction of a new conversion coefficient on 1 Jan 2009 (coefficient that converts the capital that you transfer-in into a number of years of seniority in the EU pension scheme). Continue reading Transfer-out of pension rights
Brexit and Staff Cuts
The prospects for the EU and the UK reaching an agreement on the financial settlement of Brexit do not look good at the moment. Among many other issues, the issue of the UK contribution to the payment of our pensions is a topic of debate (See copy of Times article– obviously, the article makes no distinction between the extremely generous pensions of staff recruited before the 2004 reform of the Staff Regulations and the rest of the staff). Continue reading Brexit and Staff Cuts
Pensions and Brexit
Generation 2004 regularly alerts the staff with respect to the sustainability of our pension scheme. Commissioner Oettinger seems to agree with us (“He therefore recommended a rigorous [budgetary] approach, particularly as there would be a considerable increase in the cost of EU officials’ pensions in the coming years“, see middle of page 14 in the Minutes of the last meeting of the College in May). Some more reasons to worry according to an article in The Guardian: an “EU diplomat” is quoted as saying “we cannot trade pensions for the MFF” [during the Brexit negotiations]. Let us hope that this diplomat really means what (s)he said. The fact that the Brexit Task Force has so far not bothered informing the staff about what is in preparation with respect to the employees of the institutions, not even those who have British origins, almost a year after the Brexit referendum, is not a good sign. The article in The Guardian emphasises that the EU has promised transparency, as opposed to the UK negotiators who apparently want secrecy. We have some doubts about this transparency pledge by the EU, see top of page 4 of our May newsletter. Continue reading Pensions and Brexit
SOS your pension! – G2004 is exploring SOLUTIONS
- Other institutions, in particular the European Investment Bank, have already taken precautionary measures. Indeed, the EIB recently switched from a notional pension scheme similar to the pension scheme of EU officials to a fully-funded pension scheme (see here).
- Some more clairvoyant managers (as well as younger managers) are trying to move the lines on pensions. The Commission reviewed in February 2012 four scenarios to create a real pension fund (see here).
Continue reading SOS your pension! – G2004 is exploring SOLUTIONS
SOS your pension! – The EU pension scheme is a barrier to mobility
- For those who choose to leave the institutions before reaching 10 years of service, “transfer-out” of pension rights to a private scheme is possible but under very strict conditions that limit the range of financial products available for the transfer (see here). In particular, the available private schemes charge a high entry fee because they are fully aware that their customers have no viable alternative.
- For those who remain for more than 10 years in service, the “transfer-out” of pension rights can only be back to national systems where the applicable conditions are left to the discretion of national authorities. In particular, there is no transparency on the amount of pension rights that the “transfer-out” will generate in countries where pensions are based on an annuity principle (countries where in order to get a pension, you need to have contributed for a number of years).
Continue reading SOS your pension! – The EU pension scheme is a barrier to mobility
SOS your pension! – Generation 2004’s analysis: drastic further reductions are looming
The service cost of EU staff pensions is rising very quickly while cost of salaries is decreasing rapidly because of the hiring of new officials at low grades, the massive recruitment of underpaid CAs and the reduction in staff numbers. As a result, Generation 2004 reckons that the service cost of pensions will exceed the cost of salaries around 2025. It is unlikely that MS will accept to spend more on pensions of retired staff than on salaries of active staff. Since MS do not seem to find any value in increasing our salaries, the most likely decision will be drastic reduction of pension benefits. Continue reading SOS your pension! – Generation 2004’s analysis: drastic further reductions are looming