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Dear Member

This only applies to you if you were an active member of a public sector pension scheme on and before 1 April 2015.

You may be aware of the ongoing issues relating to changes that were made to all public sector pensions in 2015.

The ongoing issue arose because of a court decision in England that found that aspects of those changes were discriminatory on grounds of age. You will commonly hear this referred to as the McCloud decision.

Latest Information

11 July Consent Reminder

Latest article on Injury to Feelings Case. Deadline for consent forms to MTB Solicitors Tuesday 15 August

Click here for more
17 May NIPSA Age Discrimination Pension Cases: Urgent Action Required

NIPSA has lodged tribunal cases for Injury to Feelings arising out of the McCloud decision on public sector pensions.

Click here for more
UPDATE 29 SEP: I RETIRED PRE 1 APRIL 2022 DOES THIS CASE AFFECT ME?

Any member who retired before 1 April 2022, unless they retired early, was in the protected group which allowed them to remain in their old pension scheme. There was no detriment and therefore there is no associated Injury to Feelings case for those members.

NIPSA has been monitoring this issue extremely closely. I have heard from many members about the negative impacts the 2015 changes had, and continue to have, on them. NIPSA is acutely aware that your pension is one of the most important aspects of your remuneration package. I know that for many members the pension that they believed they would be entitled to when they joined the public sector was a crucial factor in choosing a public sector career. NIPSA has engaged with the Government extensively on the issue. The Government, both in Westminster and Stormont, has committed to addressing the discrimination that was found to exist by the court. There have been a number of consultation exercises carried out by the various local Departments responsible for the different public sector pension schemes in operation in Northern Ireland. All consultation responses have favoured what is known as the ‘deferred choice underpin’ which means that if you are someone who was affected by the changes you will have a right to retrospectively pick, at the point of retirement, which pension scheme you wish to avail of for what is known as ‘the remedy period’. That means you can decide what scheme gives you a more lucrative pension at the point of retirement. This remedy only applies to the period of 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2022. Any pension for years of service post 31 March 2022 will be based on the new pension schemes.

There are a number of issues that arise from the proposed remedy, such as how it is funded and whether it truly removes the discriminatory elements of the 2015 changes, and NIPSA understands that there may well be further litigation on such issues. We will continue to monitor this carefully and scrutinise all legislation proposed to implement the deferred choice underpin.

The reason I write to you today is because the Government had made no proposal at all to pay you compensation for what is known as ‘injury to feelings’. This is a type of compensation that can be paid to those who have been subjected to acts of discrimination to compensate them for the distress, upset and hurt that the discrimination has had upon you. I know that many members were extremely upset and worried by the changes and many felt wronged by the fact that older colleagues were protected from the changes. A difference in age of weeks or even days had a major impact on some of our members, whilst many of our members feel seriously aggrieved at the prospect of retiring with a less lucrative pension than a comparable older colleague.

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I believe the failure to make any proposal to pay injury to feelings compensation is totally unjust. NIPSA has taken advice from our solicitors and from senior and junior counsel on what you are entitled to. I cannot disclose the advice as it is privileged and remains confidential but I can say that after considering the advice both the General Council and I have no doubt whatsoever that the correct course of action was to lodge Industrial Tribunal claims on behalf of every current member of NIPSA who was an active member of a public sector pension scheme on and before 1 April 2015. This is a herculean task, and is not a step that we are taking lightly and we have now lodged cases on behalf of members

When you joined NIPSA you entrusted us to protect your job, your rights, your benefits, and to negotiate on your behalf. We have therefore acted to protect your position by commencing litigation. This litigation will not cost you anything personally in respect of legal costs. In light of the large number of members involved, the litigation was commenced on an opt out basis. We hope that no member would wish to withdraw from this litigation but if any do, we believe the total number who will withdraw will be very small. An opt out approach is therefore the most efficient way forward.

Any member who wishes to opt out of this litigation can click here to email us directly or write to Opt Out at NIPSA, Harkin House, 54 Wellington Park, Belfast BT9 6DP. In the body of the email you should simply list your name, current employer, date of birth, national insurance number and NIPSA membership number where known. If you do not know your NIPSA membership number, provide your date of birth, national insurance number and address that NIPSA have on record for you. We would ask that opt out emails are sent to NIPSA on or before 7 October 2022.

Commencing litigation of this scale will entail significant administrative work. It is therefore important that the membership details we have for every member are correct. Members can update their home address, or details about who their current employer is, by using our online Update Home Address form. We would also ask you to speak to your fellow NIPSA members about this letter and ensure they are aware of it. If any member has not received it, they may not have updated their address with us after a home move.

The litigation will not progress quickly. We are aware of a number of similar claims that are currently stayed pending the outcome of cases in England that are at an advanced stage. We have a section on the NIPSA website dealing with pensions and regular updates will be uploaded there. Any significant developments will be posted as soon as we are aware of them so this will be the best way to get an update on the case, but I would ask that you bear in mind that it is likely to be early 2023 before there are significant updates.

I know you will have many questions. I have tried to anticipate some and attach a further information sheet. There is also an FAQs section on the website which will be updated continuously. I would also ask that you follow our social media sites as they too will carry information on this issue.

For now, can I take this opportunity to wish you and your family well.

Yours sincerely

Carmel Gates

General Secretary

How did the changes made to public sector pensions come about?

In March 2011 the Independent Public Services Pension Commission published a review of Public Sector Pensions, the ‘Hutton Report’. It recommended wholesale public sector pension reform in order to place public sector pensions on a more sustainable footing. The UK Government largely accepted the recommendations of that Report and enacted pension reforms through the Public Service Pensions Act 2013. In March 2012 the NI Executive reviewed the UK government’s policy for a new Career Average Revalued Earnings (CARE) model for all public sector pension schemes, and elected to adopt the same model approach. The NI Executive therefore enacted the Public Service Pensions Act (Northern Ireland) 2014 which mirrored the provisions of the Public Service Pensions Act 2013.
What is the Court decision that is referred to it the letter?

Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice and another v McCloud and others; Secretary of State for the Home Department and others v Sargeant and others [2018] EWCA Civ 2844. You will commonly hear this referred to as the McCloud decision. You can access it online on the BAILII website at http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2018/2844.html.
What did the Court find?

The Court held that the transitional protection offered to members, in the Judges’ and Firefighters’ schemes, who were closer to retirement age, gave rise to unlawful discrimination against younger members who were not eligible for protection. On 27 June 2019 the Supreme Court refused permission for a further appeal on that ruling. Transitional protection is the policy which allowed some older workers to stay in the old, unreformed pension schemes, instead of being moved to new career average schemes with higher pension ages in 2015. In most schemes transitional protection meant that those within 10 years of their schemes’ normal pension age as at 1 April 2012 retained membership of their pre-2015 scheme, the majority of which were final-salary schemes.
Was everyone affected by the changes worse off?

Not necessarily. Some members will be better off on the newer schemes as a result of their individual circumstances. Due to the complexities of calculating pension benefits it is difficult to predict how many would be better off.
What is the Government going to do about this?

The Government have made public commitments to remedy the discrimination that has occurred and intends to address the difference in treatment across all schemes.
Who will pay for the cost of remedying the discrimination?

There have been suggestions that the cost of remedying the discrimination will be deemed a member cost under the various pension schemes. NIPSA vehemently opposes any attempt to deem such costs as member costs. We have raised these concerns with government and we will be monitoring that situation very closely.
Why bring litigation now?

As there are time limits to bring claims, we have lodged proceedings to protect your position and hold the government to its word by seeking injury to feelings compensation.
How long will this take?

It is difficult to give a timeline given the complexities involved. We expect it will take a number of years to fully resolve all claims. We don’t expect any significant updates prior to Summer 2023.
Will this cost me anything?

No. NIPSA will indemnify you in respect of all costs. We will also seek to recover our costs if these claims are defended in an unreasonable manner.
Will I have to go to Tribunal to give evidence?

We believe it is very unlikely that cases will be heard individually or that every member will have to give evidence. If cases do proceed, lead claims that are representative of all members will be run to determine what compensation members are entitled to.
How much money will I receive?

Injury to feelings compensation is assessed under Vento Guidelines and depends upon the severity of the injury caused. The level of compensation will be a matter for negotiation between our legal team and that of the Government, or failing that, will be determined by an Industrial Tribunal.
I don’t want to bring a claim. What should I do?

You can opt out by emailing optout@nipsa.org.uk before 7 October 2022.

Important

We cannot answer individual members questions by phone or email but if you have a question that is not addressed in this FAQ document, please email your question to Danielle Dawson.

An answer to your question will be included in further articles as soon as possible.

As this case moves forward, it is very important that we hold your current home address as future correspondence from NIPSA will be issued to your home.

You may update your home address by completing the form below, by phoning 028 9066 1831 or by emailing our Membership section.

In the unusual circumstances that you do not wish NIPSA to use your home address, please contact us here .